HD 

.9£&5 


o 


NIVERSITY  OF  OREGON  BULLETIN 


New  Series 


JANUARY,  1915 


Vol.  XII,  No.  5 


Markets  for  Potatoes 

Markets  and  Market  Conditions.    Production.    Costs.    Prices  to 
Producers.     Starch,  Alcohol,  Stockfood,  Flour,  and  other 
Industrial  Uses  of  Potatoes.     General  Information 
on  the  Marketing  Feature  of  the  Potato  In- 
dustry, in  European  Countries  and  the 
United  States,  with  special  ref- 
erence to  the  Pacific  Coast 
States  and  parti ^u- 
larly  Oregon. 


Issued  by  the 

Department  of  Commercial  and  Industrial  Survey 

University  of  Oregon  School  of  Commerce 

H.  B.  MILLER,  Director 


(COMPILED  BY  J.  FKEDERir  THOKNE) 


IC-NRLF 


iblished  montMy  by  the  University  of  Oregon,  and  entered  at  the  postofffce  in 
Eugene,    Oregon,    as    second-class    matter. 


BOBI'IZWIW 


Markets  for  Potatoes 


Markets  and  Market  Conditions.    Production.    Costs.  .  Prices  to 
Producers.     Starch,  Alcohol,  Stockfood,  Flour,  and  other 
Industrial  Uses  of  Potatoes.     General  Information 
on  the  Marketing  Feature  of  the  Potato  In- 
dustry, in  European  Countries  and  the 
United  States,  with  special  ref- 
erence to  the  Pacific  Coast 
States  and  particu- 
larly Oregon. 


Issued  by  the 

Department  of  Commercial  and  Industrial  Survey 

University  of  Oregon  School  of  Commerce 

H.  B. 'CILLER,  Director 


GRAPHIC   .ANALYSIS   OF   POTATO 
(From  "The  Potato,"  by  Grubb  &  Guilford ) 


•  ItfARKETS  FOR   POTATOES 

2 

.& 


7f&9- 


INDEX    /     7 ' 

PAGE 

Summary   of   Salient    lA-atur< •* .  .-..JF~.G...±      /         .  2-5 

Authorities  quoted 6 

General    remarks    - 6 

Production  in  Foreign  Countries  and  the  United  States 7-15 

Conditions  in  Pacific  Coast  States - 15-19 

Competition  -for    Oregon    potatoes 20,  21 

Data  on   cost  of   production 21-26 

Market   prices 26,  27 

Possible  markets  for  Oregon  potatoes 27,28 

Industrial  use  of  potatoes 28,  29 

Starch 29-33 

Alcohol    33-35 

Dried 35-38 

Stock  food   38-40 

A  Suggestion  41 

SUMMARY  OF  SALIENT  FEATURES 

The  yearly  per  capita  consumption  of  potatoes  in  Germany  is  7.3  bushels. 
In  the  United  States,  2.6  bushels.  See  page  13. 

Imports  of  potatoes  into  this  country  now  are  admitted  free  of  duty.  The 
freight  rate  on  potatoes  from  Portland  to  the  Atlantic  Coast,  via  the  Panama 
Canal  is  30  cents  per  cwt. 

It  may  be  of  advantage  to  combine  shipments  of  potatoes  with  onions.  Care 
should  be  taken,  though,  as  onions  deteriorate  quickly,  and  a  recent  shipment 
through  the  Panama  Canal  to  New  York  was  almost  a  total  loss  due  to  spoiling. 
See  pages  17  and  28. 

While  Oregon  may  not  have  starch  or  other  factories  for  the  industrial  use 
of  potatoes,  this  is  one  of  the  best  states  of  the  Union  in  which  to  raise  hogs, 
and  converting  potatoes  into  pork  generally  may  be  a  much  more  profitable 
process  than  starch  making,  a  "plant"  that  every  farmer  can  have  close  at 
home.  See  pages  28-33. 

Imports  of  potatoes  into  the  United  States  make  an  investigation  of  the  cost 
of  production  and  marketing  of  our  crops  a  very  important  feature,  and  a 
careful  study  of  Tables  2,  3  and  the  entire  chapter  on  cost  data  should  be  of 
value  to  the  Oregon  farmer  in  demonstrating  the  competition  he  must  meet  and 
the  conditions  under  which  he  must  meet  it.  See  pages  8,  9,  20-26. 

Note  the  comparative  prices  received  by  Oregon  producers  in  1912,  1913  and 
1914,  as  against  the  other  Far  Western  states  and  the  average  for  the  United 
States.  See  pages  10,  20  and  22. 

In  considering  the  above  note  also  the  comparative  costs  of  production  as 
shown  by  Tables  14  and  15.  See  pages  22  and  23. 

At  one  time  the  United  States  supplied  the  Philippine  market  with  practically 
all  the  potatoes  used.  Now  Japan  ships  large  quantities  to  the  Philippines,  and 
practically  supplies  the  entire  Asiatic  market,  driving  out  the  United  States  from 
this  profitable  field. 

In  Germany  the  profits  of  the  potato  crop  and  the  low  cost  of  fertilizers 
justify  the  liberal  use  of  them  to  an  extent  not  practiced  in  this  country. 
See  page  13. 

Until  a  surplus  above  the  needs  for  table  purposes  is  produced,  and  means 
provided  for  disposing  of  it  at  a  profit  to  the  grower,  the  present  succession  of 
fat  and  lean  years  must  be  expected,  and  just  so  long  potato  growing  for  market 
will  be  a  speculative  enterprise.  See  page  13. 

In  competition  with  the  Idaho  and  Yakima  producers,  Oregon  growers  should 
remember  that  these  districts  have  lower  freight  rates  to  the  Southern  and 
Eastern  markets,  and,  generally  speaking,  a  loose  sandy  soil  and  climatic  condi- 
tions much  superior  for  potato  growing  to  that  in  this  State.  Their  cost  of 
production  also  is  lower,  as  a  rule.  See  pages  16,  20  and  21. 

MAIN 


MARKETS  FOR   POTATOES  3 

The  world's  individual  record  crop  is  that  produced  on  the  estate  of  Lord 
Roseberry,  in  England,  2,053  bushels  per  acre,  with  only  45  bushels  of  culls. 
Compared  with  this  the  standard  of  efficiency  of  the  United  States  is  only 
4%%.  A  standard  of  500  bushels  really  is  low,  and  by  proper  methods,  easily 
might  be  raised  to  1,000  bushels  per  acre  or  more.  See  page  7. 

O?  the  potato  growing  countries  of  the  world  the  United  States  stands  third 
from  the  bottom  in  yield  per  acre.  See  pages  7  and  8. 

Bermuda  potatoes  command  an  average  price  of  $1.44  per  bushel  in  the 
New  York  market,  owing  to  their  high  quality  for  table  use.  See  Table  No.  3, 
page  9,  and  page  28. 

The  largest  crop  is  not  always  worth  the  most  money.  See  Table  No.  5, 
page  12. 

Prices  to  producers  in  Oregon,  May  1,  1913  and  1914,  were  less  than  half 
the  average  for  the  United  States.  See  Table  No.  26,  page  27. 

Germany  leads  the  world  in  acreage  devoted  to  potatoes,  in  total  production 
and  average  yield  per  acre,  in  economy  of  operation,  and  in  utilization.  See 
page  12. 

Human  consumption  of  potatoes  in  Germany  averages  over  440  pounds 
per  capita  per  annum.  See  pages  12  and  13. 

Growers  of  seed  potatoes  in  Germany  are  given  one-half  the  regular  freight 
rates  on  the  government  railroads.  See  page  12. 

The  average  wholesale  price  in  cities,  for  10  years,  in  Germany,  was  23.67 
cents  per  bushel.  In  Chicago  for  the  same  period,  56  cents.  See  page  13. 

In  Germany  the  potatoes  raised  for  industrial  purposes  are  marketed  for 
about  one-third  less  than  table  potatoes.  See  page  13. 

Germans  plant  over  24  bushels  of  seed  potatoes  to  the  acre,  and  in  some 
cases  as  high  as  35  bushels.  See  page  13. 

When  the  markets  in  Germany  are  over-supplied  the  Germans  do  not  talk 
of  reducing  production,  but  of  finding  some  new  outlet  for  the  surplus.  See 
page  13. 

Germany  maintains  a  long  rotation  between  potato  crops  on  the  same  ground, 
three  to  seven  years  between  crops.  See  page  13. 

Germany  has  solved  the  problem  of  supplying  a  nation  with  this  important 
foodstuff  at  a  reasonable  price  regardless  of  annual  variations  of  yield.  The 
price  iluctuation  there  in  five  years  was  only  27  cents  per  bushel  against  $1.34 
in  Chicago.  'See  page  13. 

German  production  in  1914  averaged  over  a  ton  for  every  person  in  the 
Empire.  See  page  8. 

Until  a  surplus  above  the  needs  for  table  use  is  produced  in  this  country, 
and  means  provided  for  disposing  of  it  at  a  profit  to  the  grower,  the  present 
succession  of  fat  and  lean  years  must  be  expected,  and  just  so  long  potato 
growing  for  market  will  be  a  speculative  enterprise  in  the  United  States.  See 
page  13. 

It  is  possible  that  South  America  offers  a  good  market  for  Oregon  potatoes. 
Se'e'page  28. 

Where  corn  can  be  grown  economically,  it  is  better  for  stock-feeding  than 
potatoes,  and  a  cheaper  source  of  starch,  glucose,  alcohol,  etc.  See  pages  29, 
31  and  33. 

The  average  European  farm  laborer  gets  39  to  49  cents  a  day  for  his  labor, 
without  board.  See  page  15. 

Utah  is  in  need  of  good  seed  potatoes.     See  page  17. 

In  1911,  Idaho  shipped  all  her  surplus  crop  to  32  states  of  the  Union.  See 
page  10. 

Prices  in  Washington  rarely  go  below  $10.00  a  ton  in  carload  lots.  See 
page  16. 

Hill  selection  of  seed  means  higher  quantity,  quality,  and  price.     See  page  19. 

A    thorough   and   exact   system   of   cost   keeping   is   an   all    important   feature 

of  profitable  potato  marketing.     If  the  grower  does  not  know  what  his  potatoes 

cost  him  per  bushel,  how  is  he  to  determine  whether  ;t  is  a  profitable  crop  for 

him  to  raise  or  not?     See  pages  21   to   26. 

It  is  the  starch  content  of  the  potato  that  gives  its  f no  1  and  industrial  values. 
SI-M>  page  28. 


48366 


MARKETS  FOR   POTATOES 


Quantity  of  starch  in  potatoes  varies  from  10  to  20%.     See  pages  28,  31. 

There  is  little  encouragement  for  the  building  of  plants  for  the  industrial 
utilization  of  potatoes  in  the  United  States  on  a  scale  comparable  with  that  in 
Germany  until  some  change  in  agricultural  conditions  gives  the  manufacturer 
a  cheaper  raw  material.  See  page  28. 

The  margin  of  profit  in  manufacturing  starch,  alcohol,  etc.,  from  potatoes 
is  very  small.  See  page  28. 

Maine  manufactures  over  80%  of  the  potato  starch  made  in  the  United  States. 
See  pages  29  and  30. 

The  price  received  for  potato-starch  is,  roughly,  a  little  less  than  twice  as 
much  as  the  cost  of  the  potatoes  used.  See  page  30. 

In  Germany  potatoes  particularly  rich  in  starch  are  grown  especially  for 
the  starch  industry.  See  page  31. 

Average  starch  content  of  Oregon  potatoes  is  19.4%  ;  of  California  15.2%. 
See  page  31. 

One  hundred  pounds  of  potatoes  will  yield  about  16  pounds  of  starch.  See 
page  31. 

It  costs  to  build  a  starch  factory  all  the  way  from  $8,000.00  to  $60,000.00. 
See  pages  32  and  33. 

Not  more  than  25  cents  per  bushel  can  be  paid  for  potatoes  for  the  manu- 
facture of  starch,  profitably.  See  pages  32  and  33. 

Potato-starch  is  delivered  to  cotton  mills  in  New  England  for  3*4  cents  to 
:;%  cents  per  pound.  Foreign  starch  can  be  landed  in  Boston  for  from  3  to  3% 
cents  per  pound.  See  pages  32  and  33. 

Maine  pays  15  to  30  cents  per  hundred  weight  for  culls  for  starch  making. 
Sec  page  32. 

Five  starch  factories  in  Minnesota  were  sold  for  junk  on  account  of  lack  of 
profit.  See  page  32. 

The  market  price  for  potato-starch  is  controlled  by  the  price  of  corn-starch, 
ll/2  times  the  latter  is  the  rule.  See  page  33. 

Approximately  10  pounds  of  industrial  alcohol  can  be  made  from  100  pounds 
of  potatoes.  Potatoes  will  have  to  be  produced  for  at  least  15  cents  per  bushel 
to  compete  with  Indian  corn  for  alcohol  manufacture.  See  page  33. 

German  authorities  consider  their  dried  potato  product  to  have  a  feeding  value 
for  stock  equivalent  to  80%  of  that  of  American  corn.  See  page  39. 

Four  tons  of  fresh  potatoes  make  one  ton  of  dried.     See  page  36. 

19,000,000  swine  are  supported  by  potato  feed  in  Germany.     See  page  39. 

Plant  for  drying  10,000  tons  of  potatoes  costs  about  $18,000.00.  For  a  small 
farm-plant  about  $2,400.00.  See  page  3.". 

Dried  potatoes  are  not  in  competition  with  the  fresh.     See  page  36. 

In  1910  more  than  12,000,000  bushels  of  potatoes  were  dried  in  German 
factories.  See  page  36. 

Cooperative  associations  and  industrial  plants  may  solve  the  marketing 
problem.  See  page  41. 

The  comparative  values  of  potatoes  for  various  purposes  may  be  summed  up 
as  follows,  taking  60  cents  per  bushel  as  an  average  farm  price  paid  for 
table  use : 

Value    for    seed 90      cents  per  bushel 

Value    for    table    use 60      cents  per  bushel 

Value   for    starch   manufacture 25       cents  per  bushel 

Value    for    stock    food 20      cents  per  bushel 

Value    for   alcohol   manufacture 15      cents  per  bushel 

Value    for    flour 12.5  cents  per  bushel 

The  average  price  paid  in  Germany  for  potatoes  for  industrial  use  is  18.3 
cents  per  bushel.  See  page  34. 

The  total  potato  crop  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  is  less  than  the  number 
of  bushels  used  for  seed  alone  by  Germany.  See  page  8. 

Over  one-fifth  of  the  world's  crop  of  potatoes  is  grown  in  Germany.  See 
page  8. 

It  is  in  the  methods  of  culture  and  utilization,  rather  than  soil  conditions, 
that  the  United  States  falls  behind  other  countries.  See  page  14. 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


Wages  for  farm  labor  in  Germany  averages  39  to  49  cents  per  day,  without 
board.  See  page  15. 

One-half  to  two-thirds  of  the  money  paid  by  the  consumer  never  reaches 
the  farmer.  See  page  15. 

Foreign  returns  per  acre  are  high,  but  per  worker  are  low.     See  page  15. 

Much  of  the  seed   used    in   California  is  imported  from  Oregon.      See  page  16. 

Oregon's  most  serious  competition  in  the  potato  markets  is  from  Idaho.  See 
pages  20,  21. 

Quality  is  everything  in  the  potato  business.  It  pays  to  grade  potatoes  as 
carefully  as  are  apples.  Appearance  is  a  great  aid  in  marketing.  See  pages 
17,  18  and  19. 

The  least  profitable  price  to  the  grower  for  seed  potatoes  is  60  cents  per 
bushel.  See  page  17. 

Packing  in  crates  is  advisable  for  long  distance  shipments.  See  pages 
18  and  28. 

Oregon  has  no  local  market  of  moment.     See  page  18. 

Proper  ventilation  for  storage  bins  is  important.     See  page  18. 

Of  the  Oregon  crop  25  to  35  per  cent  is  culls.  It  should  not  be  over  15  per 
cent.  See  page  18. 

A  thousand  farmers  have  grown  rich  raising  potatoes  in  New  York  by 
maintaining  quality.  See  page  19. 

Freight  rates  are  a  most  important  consideration.     See  pages  10  and  14. 

An  example  of  thorough  cost  keeping  data  that  could  well  be  followed  by 
other  growers.  See  page  24. 

Dealers  in  New  Orleans  will  be  glad  to  get  in  correspondence  with  possible 
shippers  from  Oregon.  See  page  28. 

The  cooler  the  soil  the  greater  the  starch  content  of  potatoes.     See  page  29. 

It  is  impracticable  to  ship  "green  starch"  to  a  central  dryer.     See  page  33. 

If  the  coast  districts  of  Oregon  produce  500  to  600  bushels  of  potatoes  to  the 
acre,  as  is  claimed,  then  that  is  where  a  starch  factory  should  be  located  in 
the  State,  if  at  all.  See  page  33. 

Potatoes  have  a  higher  percentage  of  alcohol  than  other  root  crops.  See 
page  33. 

The  industrial  utilization  of  potatoes  has  not  been  established  in  the  United 
States  for  several  reasons.  See  page  29. 

Germans  have  found  cooperative  industrial  plants  profitable.     See  page  34. 

Distillation  of  alcohol  from  potatoes  has  been  of  benefit  to  farmers  in 
Switzerland.  See  page  35. 

Manufacture  of  unpressed  potato  meal  costs,  in  Germany,  about  56  cents  per 
ton.  See  page  36. 

The  Netherlands  used  over  800,000  tons  of  potatoes  annually  for  industrial 
purposes.  See  page  36. 

The  United  States  Agricultural  Department  is  experimenting  with  wheat 
flour  mixed  with  potato  and  other  flours  to  determine  their  relative  values. 
See  page  37. 

An  acre  of  potatoes  yields  ten  or  more  times  as  much  food  material  as  one 
planted  to  wheat,  rye  or  peas,  but  the  food  value,  per  pound,  is  very  much  less. 
See  page  39. 

Care  should  be  taken  in  the  amounts  of  potatoes  fed  to  stock.     See  page  39. 

Ensilage  of  potatoes  with  clover,  corn,  etc.,  have  proven  satisfactory.  See 
page  40. 

Potatoes  as  stockfood  are  worth  about  one-fifth  of  cornmeal,  but  are  of 
added  value  as  a  succulent.  See  page  40. 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


AUTHORITIES  QUOTED 

As  far  as  possible  credit  has  been  given  in  every  case   to  the  sources  from 
which  the  information  in  this  bulletin  has  been  drawn.     These  sources  are  indi- 
cated  by   the   bracketed   letters — as    (a) — corresponding  with   the   following   list 
of  authorities,   unless   otherwise   stated.     Where   such   source   is  not   specifically 
given   the   facts  are  the   concensus  of   statements  made   by  more   than   one   and 
condensed  for  the  sake  of  brevity : 
(a) — United  States  Department  of  Agriculture, 
(b) — United  States  Department  of  Commerce  and  Labor, 
(c) — United  States  Consular  Reports. 

(d) — Year  Book,   1913,  United   States  Department  of  Agriculture, 
(e) — Oregon    Agricultural    College,    Bulletin   No.    121,    by   Prof.    H.    D.    Scudder, 

Professor  of  Agronomy. 
(  f  ) — Special   Consular  Report  No.    64,   "Utilization  of  Potatoes   in  Europe,"  by 

Robert  D.   Skinner,  Consul-General  at  Hamburg,   Germany,  Department 

of  Commerce,   1914. 
(g) — Bulletin  No.  64,  Department  Commerce  and  Labor,  Census  of  Manufactures, 

1905,  issued  1907. 

(h) — Report  by  C.   C.  Moore,  Assistant  Chemist,  Department  of  Agriculture, 
(i  ) — "The   Potato,"   by   E.   H.    Grubb   and   W.    S.    Guilford,    Doubleday,   Page   & 

Co.,   1912. 

(j  ) —Cornell  University  Bulletin  No.  341. 

(k) — Report  by  B.  H.  Warner,  Jr.,  Consul,  Leipzig,  Germany,  August,    1903. 
(1) — Report  by  Consul  General  A.  M.  Thackera,  Berlin,  1908. 
(m) — Report  by  Consul  Norton,  Chemnitz,  Germany, 
(n) — Bulletin  No.    47,  United   States  Department  of  Agriculture, 
(o) — Bulletin  No.    81,  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture, 
(p) — Farmers'   Bulletin  No.      65,  United   States  Department  of  Agriculture, 
(q) — Farmers'   Bulletin  No.      79,  United   States  Department  of  Agriculture, 
(r) — Farmers'   Bulletin  No.   268,  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture, 
(s) — Farmers'   Bulletin  No.    295,  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture, 
(t) — Farmers'   Bulletin  No.   334,   United  States  Department  of  Agriculture. 
(U) — Farmers'   Bulletin  No.   410,  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture. 
(v) — Farmers'  Bulletin  No.   570,  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture. 
(w) — Farmers'   Bulletin  No.   641,  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture. 
Acknowledgement  for  services  rendered  is  due  Roy  Johnson,  '15,  U.  of  O. 

GENERAL  REMARKS 

The  School  of  Commerce  of  the  University  of  Oregon  has  been  led  to  issue 
this  bulletin  on  the  commercial  aspects  of  the  potato  business  by  the  fact  that 
the  vast  majority  of  the  farmers  of  Oregon  have  met  with  financial  loss  and 
disaster  in  the  marketing  of  their  potato  crop  for  the  past  three  years.  It  seemed 
incumbent  upon  us  to  attempt  to  discover  a  remedy  or  relief  for  a  commercial 
situation  that  is  unfortunate  and  should  be  unnecessary.  That  we  have  tried  to 
do,  and  trust  that  the  suggestions  in  the  following  pages  may  be  of  benefit  to 
the  potato  growers  of  the  State. 

The  interest  being  manifested  in  the  production  of  starch  and  alcohol  from 
potatoes,  and  their  use  industrially  in  other  ways,  and  the  number  of  inquiries 
addressed  to  us  for  information  regarding  this  feature  of  the  industry,  induced 
the  investigation  which  has  resulted  in  the  report  given  herewith. 

When  the  need  and  preparation  of  this  bulletin  was  conceived  a  conference 
was  held  with  the  Oregon  Agricultural  College,  as  it  originally  was  intended  that 
the  two  institutions  should  jointly  prepare  and  issue  it,  the  Oregon  Agricultural 
College  to  supply  all  the  material  in  regard  to  production  in  Oregon  and  the 
agronomy  features,  with  suggestions  as  to  the  proper  selection  of  seed,  prepara- 
tion of  soil,  cultivation,  etc.  Later  it  was  discovered  that  the  O.  A.  C*.  had 
collected  the  material  for,  and  practically  was  prepared  to  issue  an  independent 
bulletin  covering  production  in  Oregon  and  the  problem  of  potato-starch  manu- 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


facture.  Hence  it  was  arranged  for  each  to  issue  a  separate  bulletin  and  by 
mutual  arrangement  avoid  any  duplication  of  material  insofar  as  was  possible 
and  practicable. 

No  attempt,  except  in  a  very  general  way  and  by  inference,  will  be  made 
herein  to  deal  with  the  questions  of  the  best  methods  of  growing  potatoes,  vari- 
eties, culture,  necessary  soil  and  climatic  conditions,  etc.,  except  as  they  may 
directly  affect  marketing  conditions  or  the  price  of  production,  as  in  the  use  of 
fertilizers,  irrigation,  etc.  It  is  as  a  commodity  of  commerce  after  it  is  grown  that 
we  would  deal  with  the  potato.  This  is  not  to  say  that  the  agricultural  features 
are  not  equally  important,  for  they  are  ;  nor  that  they  do  not  affect  both  cost 
and  value  of  production,  for  they  do  most  materially ;  but  only  that  there  is  a 
broad  division  between  the  two  elements  of  the  potato  business.  The  Oregon 
Agricultural  College  deals  with  problems  of  production  and  in  this  bulletin  we 
are  considering  the  financial  and  market  feature  primarily.  ( See  O.  A.  C.  Bulletin. ) 

There  is  some  conflict  in  figures  derived  from  different  sources  as  answers 
to  the  same  question — very  considerable  differences  in  some  instances.  When 
these  conflicts  in  authority  occur,  we  have,  except  when  the  source  is  specifically 
stated,  taken  the  figure  that  seems  to  be  the  most  reliable,  given  the  average  of 
all  secured,  or  quoted  the  various  reports  separately. 


PRODUCTION  IN  FOREIGN  COUNTRIES  AND  IN  THE 
UNITED  STATES 

(a)  A  comparative  statement  of  the  amounts  of  potatoes  produced  in  the 
principal  potato  raising  countries  and  in  the  several  states  of  this  country  in 
1912,  according  to  the  latest  world  figures  available:  N.  B. — This  is  the  largest 
yield  for  any  single  year  that  is  recorded,  for  the  world  and  also  for  the 
United  States. 

TABIVB   No.    1.     (d)     Acreage  Planted   and   Production   of  Potatoes   in   Countries 

Named,  1912 


Country 

Acres 

Bushels 

Av.  yiHd  per 
acre.    Bushels 

United   States   
Canada 

3,711,000 
484,000 

420,647,000 
84,885,000 

113.4 
175.4 

Newfoundland 

1,524,000 

Mexico 

924,000 

Argentina 

278,000 

38,029,000 

136.8 

Chili 

66,000 

9,656,000 

146.3 

Germany         

8,257,000 

1,844,863,000 

223.5 

•Vustria-Hungary 

4,879,000 

683,779,000 

149.0 

France                                                            .  .. 

3,863,000 

552,074,000 

145.8 

United    Kingdom    

1,208,000 

213,783,000 

177.0 

Netherlands 

426,000 

121,878,000 

286.1 

Belgium                    .                  ..        

387,000 

121,481,000 

313.9 

Italy 

712  000 

56  313  000 

79.0 

Russia   (European) 

13,167,000 

1,356,824,000 

121.5 

Spain         

632,000 

93,089,000 

347.3 

Sweden 

378,000 

65,765,000 

173.9 

Switzerland 

46,712,000 

Japan    

173,000 

25,669,000 

148.3 

Africa 

5  407,000 

Australasia         —                    

159,000 

16,666,000 

104.8 

Total  of  above  and  for  world 

5,898,531,000 

It  will  be  seen  from  Table  No.  1,  that  the  United  States  stands  third  from 
the  bottom  in  yield  per  acre,  that  Belgium  produces  over  200  bushels  more  per 
aero  than  we  do,  and  that  Germany  doubles  our  yield  per  acre.  The  difference 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


is  even  more  marked  if  individual  farms  in  Germany  may  be  used  for  compar- 
ison, some  of  these  producing  600  to  1,000  bushels  to  the  acre.  The  world's 
individual  record  crop  is  that  produced  on  the  estate  of  Lord  Roseberry,  in 
England,  2,053  bushels  per  acre,  with  only  45  bushels  of  culls.  Compared  with 
this  our  standard  of  efficiency  is  only  4%  per  cent.  A  standard  of  500  bushels 
per  acre  really  is  low,  and,  by  proper  methods,  where  conditions  are  favorable, 
easily  might  be  raised  to  1,000  bushels,  or  more. 

Note  also  that  Germany,  with  a  total  area  less  than  that  of  Texas,  plants 
about  five  million  more  acres  than  the  entire  United  States.  Germany's  potato 
acreage  is  more  than  double  and  the  yield  more  than  four  times  that  of  the 
United  States.  The  total  crop  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  is  less  than  the 
number  of  bushels  used  for  seed  alone  by  Germany.  Over  one-fifth  of  the 
world's  crop  is  grown  in  Germany.  The  German  crop  for  1914  exceeded  80 
million  tons,  or  over  a  ton  for  every  man,  woman  and  child  in  the  Empire. 

The  average  yield  in  bushels  per  acre  for  a  period  of  nine  years,  1903-12, 
for  the  principal  countries  were:  United  States,  96.0;  Russia,  104.6;  Hungary. 
116.8;  France,  129.5;  Austria,  152.4;  Germany,  196.8;  United  Kingdom,  202.4. 


TABLE   No. 


2.     (a)     Acreage,   Production,   Prices,   Exports   and   Imports    in    the 
United  States,  1901  to  1914   (fiscal  years)   inclusive. 


Year 

Acreage 
planted  and 
harvested. 
Acres 

Average 
yield  per 
acre. 
Bushels 

Production. 
Bushels 

Average 
farm  price 
per  but-hel 
Dec.  1. 
Cents 

For  fiscal  year  ending 
June  30 

Ex  ports. 
B  labels 

Imports. 
Bushels 

1901     
1902 

2,611,000 
2,864,000 
•  2,966,000 
2,917,000 
3,016,000 
2,997,000 
3,013,000 
3,128,000 
3,257,000 
3,525,000 
3,720,000 
3,619,000 
3,711,000 
3,668,000 

80.8 
65.5 
96.0 
84.7 
110.4 
87.0 
102.2 
95.4 
85.7 
106.8 
93.8 
80.9 
113.4 
90.4 

210,927,000 
187,598,000 
284,633,000 
247,128,000 
332,830,000 
260,741,000 
308,038,000 
298,262,000 
278,985,000 
376,537,000 
349,032,000 
292,737,000 
420.647,000 
331,525,000 

43.1 

76.7 
47.1 
61.4 
45.3 
61.7 
51.1 
61.8 
70.6 
54.9 
55.7 
79.9 
50.5 
68.7 

741,483 
528,484 
843,075 
484,042 
1,163,270 
1,000,326 
1,530,461 
1,203,894 
763,651 
999,476 
2,383,887 
1,237,276 
2,028,261 

371,911 
7,656,162 
358,505 
3,166,581 
181,199 
1,984.160 
176.917 
403,952 
8,383,966 
353,208 
218,984 
13,734,695 
337,230 

1903     . 
1904     
1905     
1906     
1907     
1908 

1909     
1910     
1911     
1912     
1913     
1914     

Note  that  the  years  in  Table  No.  2  are  fiscal  and  not  calendar.  The  importa- 
tion for  1912  was  the  largest  in  the  history  of  the  United  States,  the  next  nearest 
being  1909.  The  lowest,  since  1852,  was  in  1907.  For  the  calendar  year  of  1914 
the  total  production  was  405,921,000  bushels;  value  $198,609,000;  average  yield 
per  acre  109.5  bushels;  farm  price  48.9  cents  per  bushel.  The  average  price 
to  producers  on  July  1,  1914,  was  81.5  cents  per  bushel. 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


M 

a 

1C      _ 

Dollars 

r-OOcg        OOCO©      :©tOt-CO  t—  TH  TH©  COCO© 
COCOOO         CO  !>•  Cg       lOOCOOieOCgCgi-iTHCgOOUS 
rlOS-*»«         -lOirH               •*!«  US  ©  •"»«  TH  eg                USCg 

usus              os                   cgrpeg 

©            i    :           i 
us" 
©            :    : 

CO 

c  °  c 

ll 

H 

£ 

QD 

1 

US  Oi  O        ©©tC        •^t-COCO©-MOOO5OiOO'«J< 
US-*rH         COTJ«0»         Cg  C-  CO  03  CO  CO  <M                TfrH 
CgCOCO        USCOi-l               t-  OS  •*  'f  <M  CO              COCO 

Oi  TH                     CO                     rHrHOOcg 
OSrH                      t-                                    Oi 

us            :    : 
t-            :    ! 

© 

§      \  \ 

111 

<n           :    :       :   :   : 

rM  02 

s 

TH  ••»<  rH  eg  oo      to  rH               ©  eo  eg  ri  to  co      cooo 

TH           eooi      con© 

||£ 

CO 

1 

(M 

co           cgcg               to 
©           eg  us               <M 

11? 

8 

ooeooooeoco©^                ?  i  o:  ©  TH  eg  TH      IMTH 

©                t—  C>J         CO  ©  US 

co            ^f  co      oo  rH  eg 

9 

n          rH                                 —   —                                               <M 

t—                rH©                      US 

co           rrt-    :          (M 
co               eg    • 

1^ 

£ 

ooi-i7ii-t—  oo©co©coTi.-it—  eoOJOoosTHrH 

t-          T»<  ©USTH    ;  t- 
«g           ©co      ^    ITH 
co           t-us      TH    :cg 

yi 

1 

1 

00         eg  CO         CO*     rH  CO  CO  r-.  •M  r-                                    CO 

1-1       1-1                     t~-cgco  eg  n 

oo          ©TH      eg    I-* 
co          cot-            :co 

i—               I—  CO 

3  s-1 

1 

eocoeg-*egi-ieoi—  ustOi-ccoooi-"*1           TH  ,-4 
co       T  in      !M       i—  -f  ©  co  -*1  n                          co 

co          ooco     to    :oo 
•*"           ©"oT      e-i     ITH 
co           ©  oi             ;co 

co"         -o"              : 

Wrf^^ 

s 

OSOS         OOrHrH                US  eg  OO  rH  t-  OS  TH  rH  Oi 

oo           TH  us      eg    i  os 

Eo^| 

1 

TH©"       •*»-"                    i-i©~us"       TH                     u; 
<N1                                           USTHTH         TH                       TH 

us           Oios      TH    ;us 
co           egoo             |TH 

02  a*J':: 

' 

1 

t-         COUSCOl—  O3USCOC<lOie<It«O5'X>«*COCOCO 

Oico      OOCOTHTH      Tt*  oo  eg  TH  TH  oo  -H  TH  t- 

><*«           ©©cooo    :eo 
oo           os  eg  co  oo    :  us 

OS                ©OS         TH      it- 

1I»£ 

TH^I      oiri              THCOCO      eg               us 

CO                                        ©MTH        TH                     TH 

oo          ooco      TH    ;uj 

Ipl 

rjHUs      cocoTHegcot-©©co©cot-t-t>t-Oius 

us          THto     co    :us 

~       .  rt 

i 

coco      eg  oo  ^      co  os  t—  t—  us  Oi  !>•          © 
TtTco"     t-                    us«oi>"     us               eg 

oo          oios     oo    :© 
co           co"co             i  eg" 

©               COUS                  !rH 
CO                     N 

<D  ®  O.'M 

"3 

1 

I.-5         t-COr1USOOCO©r1COcOTHCgO;iOCgt-CO 
COi-H        US  rH  t-  TH  eg  OO  rl  ©  US  OO  CO               O5 
l>"oi         t^r-T               rl-^t-^OO'        CO                      CO 
CO          rH                                COOi<M                                        rl 

oo           oous      eg    ;oo 

©               OOcO        U5      ICO 

co"          oo  t~T    i         i  co 
u>          coto    :        :TH 
co               eg    ' 

03  ^ 

£ 

eOCOCO-^CO         CO  CO©OOOOCOOOOCg  •*  COrH      *  OS 

rf           oo  tccg  t>cooo 

CO                 OO  t>.        OOCOrH 

©           egoo      c-rH  os 

•  >»  bo  £- 

« 

*o 

Oi        ©^f        COtr-USOi-^COosOO        OO                     CO 

©      eo-*j«      eg      cgairit-^^f 

rl                                               (—©OCrlio 

to           oo  t- 

co"              M 

r5    Cd    C-C 

. 

to           co  to    "  co  coco 

£%v* 

I 

r-l  ©"rl  -H-'crT         ^  CT;  US~^l"uS  Oii-H  I-          O5                        t-^ 
©         1-31—         t—         OOOOt-COOO^4 
71         i—                             1-  CO  Oi  rH  rH 

co           t-oo              t- 

00               031- 

co           osco 

00                 CO*,-' 

jljj 

Imported  rrom 

§     |  i  «  .  M  M     s  |  |g  Jl 

Total  —  includ- 
ing other  countries 

Recapitulation  — 
lOurope  
North  America  
South  America  
Asia  
Oceania  
Africa  

The  salient  feat 
and,  by  comparison, 
country  ;  Mexico,  C 
glum  and  Groat  Bi 

10 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


•6 

EI6T 

oco^tt  LOO 
coco  •<»«  coo 

•^OOOlO 
O  C-l  OS  Tf  CO 

050000 
CO  COt-  COO 

10  CO  0  OT* 

OOS^ILOOS 

OOCOOCOTjt 

oo  oo  co  co  co 

CO  r-l  T»«  -^  OS 

OOOOO-* 
0  01  0  C»  to 

1 

•9JOB  Jrfvl 

CO  i-l  i-HOSt- 
l-HO  OSOO  i-! 
THlH               i-l 

*9- 

oost-oio 

OO  LO  ^f  LO  ^ 

10  00  rt<  rf  0 

000  t-  OSLO 
10  LO  LOCO  CO 

t-  OS  t-  CO.OS 

o»ooot-oo 

co  oo  oo  COL,-: 

| 

6761-0061 

'S4U90  UI 

OQ 

ft 

jgd  aoutl 

TUJKJ   'AY 

IO  CO  LO  t-  OO 

oo  use-  co  co 

cococot-o 
1-1 

OiHLOCOCO 
iHi-( 

»*  •»*<  •*  LO  co 

-*  Tt<  10  1^  co 

CO  0*050001 

er  Acre,  J 

21QI  '8*1180 

UI  'I  -09Q 

pqsnqjad 

co  co  co  100 

IOOO  t-OO  OS 

oooo  oooo  t- 

CO  00  05  00  CO 

OrHOOOOOO 

10  LO  10  00  OS 

CO  CO  00  1-1  CO 

LOCO  t-oso 

OSOOOSr-f 

^ 
to 

s 

ui  'i  -090[ 

lO  T-t  LO  LO  t- 

OOOO  CO  t-O 

OOLO  CO  COCO 

t-oco  oo 

iHrJIOOCOOS 

OOCO  rHCOt- 

o  o  o  co  to 

2 
^ 

~ 

ootad  uuvg 

1-1 

•^ 

'"' 

i. 
8 
!*< 

6061-0061 

'SJHdv   UdJ 

'sjaqenq 

o^co^ 

OS  00  05  00  00 

O  OS  CO  CO  Ol 

oot-oo  t-t- 

Ol  i-l  •*  OS  LO 

t-  00  00  L-  00 

ooeooooiTH 

oo  cs  oo  oo  oo 

ZSSZ2 

OCO  CO  CO  CC 
t—  t-  OO  CO  CO 

1 

PI9tX  'AY 

r  Bushel, 

£161 
P19U  -AY 

0  C  1  I-  10  0 
C-l  <M  01  O  CO 

01  i-(  i-t  i-l  1-1 

01  -t>  in  oo  t- 

O  t-  Oi  OOOO 

t-  -*  co  o  o 

00  OS  OOOO  00 

T-I  CO  T»<  CO  CO 
00  I-  CO  LO  ^* 

COO5OOOOO 
05  0  r-l  •*  CO 
iHi-l 

lO  OO  OO  O  OS 

oo  t-  1«<  ^  TJ« 

CO  00  00  t-  Ift 

a, 
w 

S 

•8|9qsnfr 

05^^<CCi- 

ooooo 

i-H  00  1-H  OO  Oi 

I-  OS  i-l  i-l  O 

OO3COOOO 

cqoooooo 

oooooot-cc 

,r 

«•( 

5 

PI-H  "AY 

• 

1 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

j? 

ST6I 

rHOrHOOCO 

ooooot- 

O  ^  CO  OI  LO 
CO  CD  OS  CO  OS 

i-i  o  n«  o  o 

•*t-0000 

t-oo  05**  oo 

Ol  TO  OlOO 

oioooo 

O  LOLOOCO 

O  OO  CO  O1  LO 

eo  coooo 

COrHCOlOtf 

^ 

<5 

01  cooo  r? 
eo      co 

co  os  w  co 

oco  to 

r-l 

co  coo  t-  co 
eo  eo  co 

LO^.OCOOO 

eor-«     r-Toi 

UH 

s 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooo  oo 

ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

r 

1-HOCOiOO 

•*LOTfOO 

CO  CO  COCO  t- 

OOLO  COO 

COOOO  i-l 

^•LOOOCO 

i-ncoyscoio 

Tj<rH050oS 

^70  70  LOOS 

O5OOO  OSOO 

t-OSOOS  OS 

COlOTf  t-TH 

CO  CO  OO'*'  CO 

^ 
$ 

-o 

co  co  co  co 

CO  00  05  00  iH 

co      co 

-*  oo  LOCO 

1-1005  CO 

co      1-1 

CO  •*  CO  00  t- 

CO  CO  CO  i-H 

CO  CO  OS  lO  IO 

COi-l        iHCO 

=> 

^ 

-•-.(.  i  \' 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

s 

•£I6T 

oo  t-  LO  t-  10 

**  O  Tt<  lO  1-t 

CO  IOOOOO 

eooioioio 

O  LOlOO  lO 

oooo  coo 

OOOO  CO  LOIO 

1 

1-1 

CO         CO 

TH 

i-l         iH 

CO  CO  COrH 

1-1 

I 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

ooooo 
ooooo 
ooooo 

to 

'ZT6I 

t—  1  -  O  CO  I  ft 

ro  o  c-i  LO  i-t 

t-  LO  t-  O  O 

OJ  i-H  CO  t-  t- 

O'-'i-  *f  ift 

01  -M  OO  O  i-l 

oo  10  o  o  co 

e» 

1 

1-1 

--.       -I 

i-l         r-i 

CO  CO  COrH 

•^ 

;_ 
^ 

"  :  .:        : 
':    :        • 

i     i  i 

:               : 

1  ; 

s 

•*!< 

o 

a 

1 

00 

10  

Hampshire 
nont  

sachusetts 
ie  Island.... 

lecticut  
York  
Jersey  
isylvania  .. 
ware  

ci  ct 

:  111 

CcS^UU 

.-:  -       d  w 

ill  i 

rt  d 

II  i 

QQ^£ 

00  W  0 

53223 

fill 

% 

•3  !  C  f  o 

llll§ 

1^11 

O  .^   C  >  W 

£3,0  c  c 

lill 

MARKETS  FOR   POTATOES 


11 


OOOOUS  OlAOOO  000 

O  O  OO  O  t-  WIM^rOOO  OOMCC 

co  e<i  eo  i-i  T*  us  r-^  ^j«  vd  L«  eo  eo  06 

<Ct~CiO>t~  0500000  C-OOt- 


lO        OOIT5OOO         OTCT..IO 
lT-(         <T>t--OOCCt~         IM  i— I  fO 


o  o  in>  o  tr:      o  fct?  LC  oc  it      r—  o  10      co 


OOOOO   OOOOO   000 
OOOOO   OOOOO   000 

ooooo     ooooo     <=>oo_     o 
o"o"o"oo     wtfto"o"o~     O'-M'O" 

(M0-<t<000        i-lt-OWOO        OOOSIO        <M 

coot- 

» 

ooooo  ooooo  ooo  o 
ooooo  ooooo  ooo  o 
ooooo  ooo  o_ 

O  LO  lO  £D  LO        CO  O  LO        t^» 

,_(  rH  rH         C<l 
Tf 

OOOOO   OOOOO   000   O 

OOOOO   OOOOO   000 
OOOOO   OOOOO   000 

oooo      oo 

fO<MCOr-)OO  NrHCO        «O  CD  Ift 

OOOOO       OOOOO       000 

ooooo  ooooo  ooo 
ooooo  ooooo  ooo  o 

.£ 
£ 
\ 


1111 


c 

ll!     i 


12 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


As  potato  growers  the  Utah  and  Idaho  farmers  tied  in  1912,  raising  185 
bushels  per  acre.  Maine  farmers  grew  198  bushels  by  the  lavish  use  of  fertilizers, 
hence  are  not  in  the  same  class  as  their  western  brethren.  The  average  yield 
for  the  United  States  was  113.4  bushels  per  acre. 

(a)  While  both  the  average  yield  per  acre  and  the  total  yield  for  the  United 
States  were  greater  in  1912  than  in  1913,  the  crop  for  the  latter  year  was  the 
more  valuable  in  dollars.  The  comparative  figures  are : 

(a)    TABLE   No.    5. 


Year 

Acreage 

Average  yield 
per  acre,  bu. 

Production 
bushels 

Avenue 
farm  price 
per  bu. 
Dec.  1.  cents 

Farm  value 
Dec.  1 

1912    .. 
1913    .. 

3,711,000 
3,668,000 

113.4 
90.4 

420,647,000 
331,525,000 

50.5 
68.7 

$212,550,000 
227,903,000 

Comparisons  to  determine  the  actual  needs  of  the  country,  prices  and  values, 
cannot  fairly  be  made  with  the  1912  crop,  which  was  so  large  that  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  bushels  went  to  waste  for  lack  of  a  market,  and  millions  ot  bushels 
were  sold  for  less  than  the  cost  of  production. 

The  annual  production  of  potatoes  in  the  world  is  estimated,  roughly,  to  be 
seven  billion  bushels  per  year,  about  double  the  amount  of  wheat. 

As  the  yield  per  acre  in  Europe  is  three  to  four  times,  or  more,  that  of  the 
United  States,  it  may  be  well  to  consider  some  of  the  facts  concerning  foreign 
countries,  especially  Germany,  as  that  country  leads  the  world  in  acreage  devoted 
to  potatoes,  in  total  production  and  average  yield  per  acre,  in  economy  of  opera- 
tion, and  in  utilization,  it  being  the  only  country  that  makes  any  considerable 
industrial  use  of  potatoes. 

(f)  Production  in  Germany  has  advanced  steadily  to  an  average  which  now 
exceeds  45  million  tons,  of  which  4  per  cent  is  used  for  the  manufacture  of 
starch  and  by-products,  and  8  per  cent  for  alcohol.  ...  At  the  present  time 
over  200  varieties  of  potatoes  are  raised  in  Germany,  the  most  of  which  are 
used  indifferently  for  all  purposes.  .  .  .  Freight  is  only  $3.89  per  ton 
to  America.  .  .  .  Production  in  Germany:  tons:  1905,  48,323,353;  1906, 
42,936,702;  1907,  45,538,299;  1908,  46,342,726;  1909,  46,706,252.  .  .  .  Average 
wholesale  prices,  Berlin,  for  good  table  potatoes  (per  1,000  kilos  or  2,200  pounds, 
exclusive  bags),  1905,  $12.71;  1906,  $8.23;  1907,  $12.64;  1908,  $12.85;  1909, 
$11.88.  .  .  .  Human  consumption  now  averages  over  440  pounds  per  capita 
per  annum,  and  cannot  be  increased  except  as  population  increases. 

(f)  In  Germany  the  standard  varieties  according  to  which  the  value  of  all 
new  cultivations  are  measured,  are  the  "Daber,"  of  South  American  origin,  and 
as  a  type  of  food  potato  "Richter's  Imperator."  For  38  years  the  latter  has 
proved  to  be  of  the  highest  value,  yielding  and  resisting  about  the  same  from 
year  to  year. 

The  distribution  of  reliable  seed  potatoes  at  low  rates  is  effected  by  the 
recognition  of  seed-potato  farms,  whose  owners  are  authorized  to  ship  supplies 
on  government  railroads  at  one-half  the  ordinary  freight  rates. 

TABLE    No.    6 — The    following    table    contains    some    officially    reported    German 
prices  per  bushel  of  60  pounds. 


1902 

1903 

1904  

1905  

1906  

1907 

1908  

1909  

1910  

1911  

Average,  10  years  ... 


Berlin 

Early  Red 
for  distilling. 
Cents 

Table 
potatoes. 
Cents 

12.68                       23.43 

17.00                       29.06 

23.89                       36.00 

23.62 

34.56 

13.19                       22.39 

19.35                       34.37 

21.09 

34.97 

20.54                        32.34 

17.09 

26.34 

22  72 

38.64 

19.12 

30.21 

Breslau 


Cents 


18.26 
23.29 
34.69 
32.63 
21.50 
26.29 
24.41 
26.34 
23.18 
35.81 
26.64 


M  a  j:  debars: 


Cent* 


13.06 
16.81 
21.88 
21.60 
13.71 
18.26 
19.54 
20.52 
16  81 
25.11 
18.73 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES  13 


(The  average  of  all  the  above  is  23.67  cents  per  bushel,  which  may  be  com- 
pared with  the  average  Chicago  price  for  ten  years  of  56  cents.) 

It  will  be  seen  by  Table  No.  6  that  the  potatoes  raised  for  industrial  purposes 
in  Germany  are  marketed  at  about  one-third  less  than  table  potatoes,  and  that 
the  highest  price  paid  at  any  time  for  any  quality  in  ten  years  would  be  consid- 
ered quite  low  in  the  United  States. 

(n)  Germans  plant  over  twice  as  many  seed  potatoes  per  acre  as  is  the  custom 
here,  or  more  than  24  bushels.  Another  statement  gives  1780  pounds  as  the 
average  allowance  of  seed  per  acre  in  Germany,  although  on  many  highly  culti- 
vated and  progressive  farms  they  use  as  much  as  1,960  pounds  (35.1  bushels) 
per  acre.  In  Germany  the  low  cost  of  fertilization  and  the  profits  of  the  potato 
crop  justify  the  liberal  use  of  commercial  fertilizers;  1,000  to  1,200  pounds  of 
phosphate  or  bone  dust  is  used  per  acre,  and  almost  unlimited  quantities  of 
potash.  The  average  expenditure  for  potato  manures  on  140  German  estates  was 
$10.68  per  acre.  The  yields  per  acre  of  all  farm  crops  have  been  greatly  increased 
since  the  extension  of  potato  growing.  The  German  farmers  seek  to  plant  a 
maximum  acreage  of  potatoes,  and  when,  through  the  abundance  of  their  harvests, 
their  various  markets  are  oversupplied,  there  is  not  so  much  talk  of  reducing 
production  as  of  finding  some  new  outlet  for  the  surplus.  Germany  has  a  long 
rotation,  three  to  seven  years  between  potato  crops,  the  United  States  having 
only  the  beginning  of  an  ordered  system.  The  importance  of  green  manuring  is 
not  yet  fully  appreciated  here.  Thorough  preparation  of  the  land  and  frequent 
thorough  cultivation  are  essential.  Those  American  farmers  who  have  mastered 
these  points  of  manuring,  rotation,  and  culture  are  producing  crops  which 
approach  European  standards.  The  cost  of  production  in  the  United  States  is, 
however,  higher  than  it  should  be.  The  situation  in  this  country  is  very  bad 
from  an  economic  standpoint.  Both  producer  and  consumer  suffer  in  the  long 
run.  The  farmer  runs  too  great  a  risk,  and  the  retail  price  of  potatoes  frequently 
exceeds  their  food  value.  The  problem  of  supplying  a  nation  with  this  important 
food  stuff  at  a  reasonable  price  regardless  of  annual  variations  of  yield,  has 
been  solved  by  Germany.  The  half  of  the  German  crop  destined  for  stock  food, 
alcohol  and  starch,  constitutes  an  inexhaustible  reserve  from  which  deficiencies 
in  the  supply  of  table  potatoes  may  be  filled.  That  this  is  effective  is  shown 
by  the  fact  that  the  differences  between  the  highest  and  the  lowest  average 
monthly  prices  in  Berlin  during  five  years  was  only  27  cents  per  bushel,  while 
the  fluctuation  in  Chicago  during  the  same  five  years  was  $1.34.  Until  a  surplus 
above  the  needs  for  table  purposes  is  produced  in  the  United  States,  and  means 
provided  for  disposing  of  it  at  a  profit  to  the  grower,  the  present  succession  of 
fat  and  lean  years  must  be  expected,  and  just  so  long  potato  growing  for  market 
will  be  a  speculative  enterprise.  We  must  hereafter  produce  enough  potatoes  to 
supply  all  our  needs,  as  most  sources  of  foreign  imports  have  been  closed  by  a 
plant  disease  quarantine. 

(n)  The  potato  stands  next  to  the  cereals  as  the  most  important  food  of 
northern  nations.  In  Germany  this  is  particularly  true,  for  the  per  capita  con- 
sumption is  7.3,  while  ours  is  estimated  at  2.6  bushels.  The  well-to-do  people 
there  use  3.6  bushels  per  annum,  the  peasantry  8.8  bushels,  while  the  poorer 
laborers  use  17  bushels  each  per  year. 

(n)  In  Germany  40  per  cent  of  the  crop  is  fed  to  stock;  28  per  cent  is  used 
for  table  purposes;  12  per  cent  for  seed;  6  per  cent  for  alcohol;  4  per  cent  for 
starch  and  related  products,  and  10  per  cent  decay. 

(f)  In  present  state  of  industrial  use  the  normal  applications  of  the  German 
crop  are  about : 

TABLE   No.    7. 

Manufacture  of  spirits  2,500,000  tons 

Manufacture  of  starch 1,400,000  tons 

Manufacture  of  dried  potatoes  400,000  tons 

Human    consumption    13,000,000   tons 

Replanting 6,000.000  tons 

Loss  from  decav  and  other  causes  4,000,000  tons 

Exports   (in  1912)    124,582  tons 


Total    27,424,582   tons 


14 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


The  difference  between  the  above  total  requirements  and  the  entire  crop  is 
the  quantity  used  as  fodder  in  the  form  of  fresh  potatoes,  a  utilization  much 
more  common  in  Europe  than  in  America. 

(f)  The  above  may  be  compared  with  the  following  estimate  for  the  United 
States:  Used  for:  Human  food,  68  per  cent;  seed,  11  per  cent;  stock  feed,  5 
per  cent;  starch,  1  per  cent;  loss,  15  per  cent.  There  is  no  appreciable  per  cent 
used  for  the  manufacture  in  the  United  States  of  alcohol,  dried,  dessicated,  or 
potato  flour. 

(c-1903)  Of  the  total  quantity  of  potatoes  stated  as  being  consumed  for  food, 
it  might  perhaps  be  roughly  estimated  that  about  50  per  cent  really  is  consumed 
by  human  beings.  The  rest  is  spent  in  cleaning,  paring  and  cooking,  wasted, 
disappears  in  shrinkage  due  to  loss  of  water  by  evaporation,  and  fed  to  animals 
in  a  raw  or  cooked  state. 

TABLE  No.  8 — Comparative  figures  for  Germany  and  the  United  States, 
December  1,  1899-02. 


Farm  values,  Germany,  per  bushel 

Market  value  of  yield  per  acre 

Year 

For  manufac- 
turing uses 

For  human 
food 

per  bushel 

Germany 

United  States 

Cents 

Cents 

Cents 

1899     .... 

17.59                       23.56                       39.0 

$41.98 

$34.55 

1900     .... 

19.80                       26.96                       43.1 

49.25 

34.82 

1901      .... 

14.67                      22.70                      76.7                      47.98 

50.27 

1902     .... 

12.62                       20.90                       47.1                       39.92 

45.22 

The  distilleries  and  starch  factories  in  Hungary  use  annually  approximately 
13  million  bushels  of  potatoes. 

Prices  in  France  average  about  1%  cents  per  pound  for  table  potatoes,  and 
*£  cent  a  pound  for  industrial  purposes. 

England  produces  between  7  and  8  tons  per  aero. 

Land  values  in  Holland  vary  from  $100  to  $350  per  acre,  the  average  yield 
for  1912  was  300  bushels  per  acre,  and  500  bushels  per  acre  for  potatoes  used 
for  industrial  purposes.  Average  price  received,  85  cents  per  bushel  for  table 
use,  and  20  to  35  cents  per  bushel  for  the  flour  industry. 

The  average  yield  for  Ottawa,  Canada,  is  116  bushels  per  acre;  this  is 
increased  to  300  by  good  cultivation,  and  400  to  500  is  quite  possible,  according  to 
the  Dominion  Horticulturist.  He  also  states  the  cost  to  average  $50  per  acre, 
plus  $6  for  fertilizer;  shipping  to  seaboard,  20  cents  per  bushel;  and  labor  cost 
$1.75  to  $2  per  day  without  board. 

(From  "Farmers  of  Forty  Centuries" — China,  Korea,  Japan — by  F.  H.  King.) 
"A  gardener,  growing  potatoes  near  Tientsin,  China,  obtained  a  yield,  when  sold 
new,  of  8,000  pounds  per  acre,  and  of  16,000  pounds  when  permitted  to  mature. 
The  new  potatoes  were  sold  so  as  to  bring  $51.60  and  the  mature  potatoes 
$185.76  per  acre,  making  the  earning  for  the  two  crops  the  same  season  $237.36 
gold.  By  planting  the  first  crop  very  early  these  gardeners  secure  two  crops 
the  same  season,  in  a  district  as  far  north  as  Columbus,  Ohio,  and  Springfield, 
Illinois.  The  rental  for  the  land  and  fertilizers  in  this  case  amounted  to  $30.96 
per  acre. 

"One  farmer  in  Japan  secures  a  yield  of  352  to  361  bushels  of  potatoes  per 
acre,  which  at  the  market  price  would  give  a  gross  earning  of  $64  to  $66  per  acre." 

(n)  "The  disparity  in  the  average  yields  of  Germany,  and  other  foreign  coun- 
tries, and  the  United  States,  is  not  due  to  the  superior  quality  of  their  soils. 
It  is  in  methods  of  culture  and  utilization  that  we  fall  so  far  behind.  We  need 
longer  rotation,  more  fertilizing  and  cultivation,  more  seed  per  acre\  and  greater 
care  from  first  to  last,  if  we  are  to  compete  with  foreign  countries  in  quality 
and  quantity  of  production  .  .  .  Almost  all  foreign  countries  that  have  suitable 
climatic  conditions  for  potato  growing  excel  the  United  States  in  both  quantity 
per  acre  and  quality." 

In  many  states  in  this  country  corn  can  be  grown  more  economically,  is  better 
for  stock  feeding,  and  is  a  cheaper  source  of  starch,  glucose  and  alcohol. 


MARKETS  FOR   POTATOES 


15 


The  high  co.«t  of  farm  labor  in  the  United  States  as  against  Europe  is  an 
important  factor.  It  is  stated  that  the  average  daily  wage  for  a  farm  laborer 
in  Germany,  Belgium,  France,  etc.,  is  from  39  to  49  cents  per  day,  without 
board ;  when  board  is  furnished  it  is  about  one-third  less. 

(j)  From  one-half  to  two-thirds  of  the  money  paid  by  the  consumer  never 
reaches  the  farmer.  The  difference  is  cost  of  transportation  from  field  to  table. 
Foreign  yields  per  acre  are  attractive,  but  secured  at  what  a  cost !  Women  and 
children  must  work  in  the  fields  in  order  to  live.  The  returns  per  acre  are  high, 
but  per  worker  they  nre  low.  It  is  estimated  that  the  American  farmer,  due 
possibly  to  machinery  and  power,  produces  twice  as  much  per  worker  as  does 
the  Belgian  peasant,  and  five  times  as  much  as  the  Chinese. 

CONDITIONS  IN  PACIFIC  COAST  STATES 

In  addition  to  statements  included  in  the  foregoing,  the  following  facts  con- 
cerning conditions  in  the  Pacific  Coast  states  are  pertinent. 

The  following  table  was  published  in  the  Portland  Oregonian,  of  June  25,  1914  : 
TABLE  No.   9 — Prospective  Potato  Output. 


Acreage 

Yield,  Bushels 

1914 

1913 

1914 

1913 

Oregon 

60,000 
60,000 
58,000 
34,000 

50,000 
52,000 
51,000 
29,000 

12,000,000 
12,000,000 
11,600,000 
6,800,000 

8,750.000 
6,000,000 
8,825,000 
5,222,000 

California 

Washington    

Idaho 

Total  „  

212,000 

182,000 

44,400,000 

28,547,000 

TABLE  No.  10 — John  W.  Gilmore,  of  the  Agricultural  Experiment  Station,  Univer- 
sity of  California,  gives  the  following  figures  for  California: 


Year 

Acreage 

Average 
per  acre 

Production 

Average 
farm  price, 
cents  per 
bu.  Dec.  1 

Farm  value 
Dec.  1 

1908    .. 

49,000 

107 

5,243,000 

77 

$4  037  000 

1909 

!     60  000 

130 

7  800  000 

77 

4  006  000 

1910   
1911    

70,000 
..      ..     i     72,000 

130 
135 

9,100,000 
9,720  000 

85 
90 

7,735,000 
8  748  000 

1912 

i     78  000 

130 

10  140  000 

65 

6  591  000 

i 

TABLE  No.   11 — A.  J.   Cook,  California  Commissioner  of  Horticulture,  issues  the 
following  table  under  date  of  May  It,  19U,  for  California: 

Production,   bushels  9,720,000 

Acres  under  cultivation   62,000 

Average  yield  per  acre,   bushels  135 

Average  price  per  bushel,  cents  90 

Total   value    $8,748,000 

Imports,    1911,    bushels   216,984 

Imports,   1911,   value   $    235,847 

Exports,    1911,   bushels 2,383,887 

Exports  to  foreign  countries,   1911,  value  $1,535,630 

No  data  is  given  on  cost  of  production,  which  is  estimated  to  be  $60  per  acre. 
No  figures  on  exports  to  other  states.  Value  of  land,  $200  to  $300  per  acre. 
Very  little  fertilizer  used.  While  average  yield  is  135  bushels,  it  often  runs  up 
to  300  bushels  per  acre. 

(i)  California:  The  San  Francisco  markets  recognize  three  grades  of  potatoes 
— sorted,  over  and  under  sized ;  and  standard  market.  The  latter  is  said  to  pay 
all  expenses,  the  income  from  the  others  being  figured  as  profit. 

Potatoes  are  grown  in  a  large  commercial  way  in  three  regions:  Stockton 
vicinity  of  the  San  Joaquin  Valley  ;  Salinas  and  Lompoc  Valleys  along  the  coast. 
Lompoc  yield  averages  150  to  200  bushels  per  acre;  seed  is  imported  and  changed 
every  two  years.  Salinas  Valley  imports  every  three  years.  Stockton  crop  for 
1910  was  valued  at  $2,145,000  ;  potatoes  in  this  district  are  in  the  ground  and 
shipments  from  Stockton  are 'made  continually  throughout  the  year.  The  Lompoc 
Valley  has  a  total  area  of  less  than  15,000  acres;  the  district  is  one  of  small 


16  MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


farms,  forty  acres  being  the  average  size.  The  average  yield  is  150  to  200 
bushels  per  acre.  Lompoc  is  unique  in  that  potatoes  of  the  very  highest  quality 
are  grown  at  a  low  altitude  and  a  southern  latitude.  Some  extra  large  potatoes- 
are  grown,  and  "Peerless,"  a  big  rough  variety  here,  yields  up  to  400  sacks  per 
acre.  Lompoc  seed  is  imported  almost  entirely  from  Oregon,  and  is  used  two 
years  before  another  change  is  made,  about  600  pounds  per  acre  being  the  average 
amount  used.  The  quality  of  the  Lompoc  and  Salinas  potatoes  is  such  that  they 
generally  bring  $1  to  $1.50  per  cwt.  as  they  come  from  the  field.  The  crop  is 
graded  into :  Firsts — smooth,  even,  medium-sized  potatoes ;  seconds — small, 
large  and  uneven  potatoes,  but  all  sound ;  thirds,  or  "cow  feed" — all  cut,  bad 
and  very  small  tubers. 

Conditions  in  the  Salinas  Valley  are  very  similar  to  Lompoc.  Seed  is  imported 
from  Oregon  every  third  year  by  many  growers.  The  Burbank  variety  is  grown 
exclusively. 

The  Stockton  district  is  now  one  of  the  biggest  potato-producing  sections  in 
the  world,  area  considered.  The  potatoes  are  taken  to  railroad  shipping  points 
on  boats,  and  commission  men  and  dealers  re-sort  before  selling  to  retailers. 
Practically  the  entire  crop  in  the  district  is  grown  by  Japanese,  Chinese,  Portu- 
guese and  Hindus.  Large  areas  are  rented  at  from  $12  to  $30  per  acre  and 
sublet  in  smaller  lots  on  a  share  basis,  the  landlord  furnishing  land,  implements, 
and  seed  for  49  per  cent  of  the  crop.  Seed  of  the  Burbank  variety  from  Oregon 
is  universally  used,  new  seed  being  secured  every  two  years.  Eight  sacks — of 
about  100  pounds  each — of  cut  seed  are  planted  per  acre,  and  the  yield  is  from 
80  to  150  sacks  per  acre.  Potatoes  are  never  planted  twice  in  succession  in  the 
same  ground. 

(i)  Idaho:  In  the  Burley  potato  contest  in  1910  the  prize  production  on  one 
acre  was  38,685  pounds  gross  weight.  The  weight  of  culls  was  4,150  pounds, 
making  34,535  pounds,  or  575  V2  bushels  of  marketable  potatoes.  The  variety 
was  Dalmeny  Challenge.  Idaho  shipped  last  season  8,468  carloads  to  Texas, 
Oklahoma,  Louisiana,  Kansas,  Tennessee,  Colorado,  Arkansas,  Nebraska,  Iowa, 
Illinois  and  California. 

Idaho  production  is  400  bushels  in  many  cases,  and  806  bushels  per  acre  were 
raised  on  four  acres  near  Rupert. 

In  his  report  for  1911-12,   S.  J.  Rich,  Idaho  Commissioner  of  Immigration, 
Labor  and  Statistics,  says: 

"With  soil  that  is  right,  a  regulated  moisture  supply  through  irrigation,  an 
ideal  climate,  and  freedom  from  fungus  diseases,  it  is  easy  to  understand  why 
Idaho  has  become  famous  as  a  potato  producing  state.  There  are  several  districts 
in  Idaho  where  trainloads  of  potatoes  are  sent  out  from  single  stations  every 
day  for  several  weeks  in  the  fall  and  early  winter — not  merely  in  carloads,  but 
in  trainloads.  In  1912  there  were  46,193  acres  of  potatoes  grown  in  Idaho,  which 
yielded  a  total  of  7,986,065  bushels.  The  average  yield  per  acre  was  172.8 
bushels.  According  to  government  statistics  the  State  of  Idaho  in  1911  tied  with 
Maine  for  honors  for  first  place  in  yield  per  acre  at  180  bushels  per  acre,  about 
double  the  average  yield  per  acre  for  the  United  States.  .  .  .  In  1911  Idaho 
shipped  all  her  surplus  crop  to  32  states  in  the  Union.  Many  markets  used 
Idaho  potatoes  for  the  first  time."  See  pages  20  and  21. 

(i)  Washington:  "There  is  little  danger  of  overstocking  the  market  for  pota- 
toes here.  The  Eastern  demand  for  Washington  grown  potatoes  is  good  and 
rarely  has  allowed  the  price  to  fall  below  $10  per  ton  in  car  lots  in  the  past. 
In  addition  to  this  there  is  a  rapidly  increasing  market  in  Alaska.  There  is  no 
crop  now  grown  in  Washington  which  shows  greater  variation  t  in  yield  per  acre 
than  the  potato.  This  is  largely  because  of  an  erroneous  idea  that  potatoes  as 
a  crop  do  not  need  much  attention.  The  grower  who  exercises  proper  care  with 
his  potatoes  always  is  repaid  in  the  yield  and  quality  of  his  crop.  The  average 
cost  of  producing  potatoes  in  Eastern  Washington  is  a  little  less  than  $5  per  ton, 
or  less  than  one-half  cent  per  pound. 

(i)  Nevada:  The  average  yield  is  about  six  tons  to  the  acre,  or  200  bushels, 
under  any  reasonably  skillful  handling,  but  the  leading  potato  growers  of  the 
state  grow  from  eight  to  fifteen  tons  per  acre.  The  average  selling  price  is 
about  $20  per  ton,  or  60  cents  per  bushel.  A  net  profit  of  $200  per  acre  is  not 
unusual  in  seasons  of  good  prices. 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES  17 


(i)  Utah:  In  1910  Utah  produced  an  average  of  152  bushels  per  acre.  The 
seed  is  mostly  home  grown  and  as  a  rule  is  not  well  selected.  The  main  factor 
contributing  most  to  the  discouragement  of  the  potato  growers  of  this  state  is 
the  lack  of  good  seed.  Utah  potatoes  were  shipped  last  year  (1911)  to  Cheyenne, 
Wyoming ;  Butte  and  Helena,  Montana ;  Denver  and  Pueblo,  Colorado ;  Topeka, 
Kansas;  Kansas  City,  Missouri;  Austin,  Houston  and  Galveston,  Texas;  San 
Francisco,  Sacramento  and  Los  Angeles,  California ;  Portland,  Oregon ;  Spokane, 
Seattle  and  Tacoma,  Washington. 

(i)  Colorado:  "As  to  markets,  we  have  Texas  first.  This  is  a  short  haul 
and  quick  service ;  that  is,  the  Texas  people  can  get  'spuds'  from  Greeley  quicker 
than  from  any  other  section,  and  the  freight  rates  are  as  low  and  some  lower 
than  in  a  great  many  of  the  potato  districts.  Again,  we  have  onions  which  we 
are  privileged  to  ship  with  potatoes,  and  the  smaller  towns  which  could  not  use 
a  car  of  onions  will  buy  the  potatoes  in  order  to  get  20  or  30  sacks  of  onions  in 
the  car.  .  .  .  Different  localities  use  a  different  style  of  potato.  For  instance, 
Chicago  wants  a  rather  large,  long  potato ;  St.  Louis  a  round,  medium  size ;  and 
Kansas  City  demands  the  very  largest." 

Lon  D.  Sweet,  the  Colorado  potato  king,  says  it  is  easier  to  grow  good  potatoes 
than  poor. 

"What  people  want  is  a  smooth,  regular  potato  weighing  about  half  a  pound. 
For  certain  purposes  larger  sizes  may  be  desirable,  but  for  the  general  market 
the  medium  size  is  preferred. 

"Potatoes  should  be  sized  and  graded  as  carefully  as  apples.  It  pays  to  do 
this,  and  to  put  them  up  for  market  in  attractive  packages.  Our  potatoes,  selected 
and  graded  in  this  manner,  and  put  up  in  new  sacks,  sold  for  $2  right  along 
this  season,  when  the  best  potatoes  from  anywhere,  packed  in  the  ordinary  way 
and  of  irregular  size,  brought  from  80  cents  to  $1.15  and  $1.20. 

"To  grow  the  right  kind  of  potatoes  you  must  do  just  as  you  do  when  you 
breed  fine  cattle.  Your  seed  must  be  selected.  If  you  plant  runty,  diseased  seed, 
you  harvest  diseased  runts.  Seed  potatoes  should  be  selected  from  hills  which 
have  produced  from  10  to  12  potatoes  of  the  kind  sought,  good  even  size  and 
healthy.  Then  plant  the  whole  potato — don't  cut  your  seed  potatoes. 

"Rotate  your  crops  to  insure  healthy  and  well  fertilized  soil.  See  that  the 
proper  amount  of  water  is  given,  and  that  the  crop  is  well  cultivated.  There's 
no  secret  about  it.  Anybody  can  raise  good  potatoes  if  they  will  give  it  thought 
and  attention." 

(e)  Oregon:  Too  much  importance  cannot  be  placed  upon  the  importance  of 
seed  growing  and  seed  selection  in  securing,  improving  and  holding  markets  for 
Oregon  potatoes.  If  the  farmers  of  Oregon  would,  and  with  sufficient  water 
they  can  if  they  will,  establish  a  record  of  500  to  600  bushels  per  acre  they 
probably  could  get  five  to  ten  times  the  present  prices,  selling  seed  to  other 
states.  (See  O.  A.  C.  Bulletin.) 

Mr.  George  H.  Brown   (see  page  24)   says: 

"The  main  thing  in  improvement  of  the  quality  of  potatoes  is  in  the  selection 
of  seed.  I  do  not  think  that  so-called  'inbreeding'  counts  for  very  much.  Potatoes 
can  be  bred  up  as  well  as  down,  and  if  properly  selected  and  grown  will  improve 
just  as  readily  as  they  will  deteriorate  with  wrong  methods.  Rotation  of  crops 
is  of  course  essential,  but  I  do  not  believe  it  necessary  to  change  soils.  The 
prime  requisites  for  successful  potato  growing  are :  Seed,  soil,  location,  and  the 
man  behind  all  three.  It  is  worse  than  useless  to  attempt  it  on  some  soils,  and 
if  you  cannot  raise  choice  to  fancy  grades  it  is  folly  to  face  the  competition. 
Quality  is  everything  in  the  potato  business.  Buyers  always  are  hunting  it.  It 
is  the  growing  and  marketing  of  indifferent  grades  that  keeps  down  the  price. 
Growing  in  small  quantities  hampers  both  ease  of  selling  and  price ;  it  is  best 
to  raise  at  least  a  carload  and  so  fill  your  own  car  with  choice  potatoes  that 
the  buyers  can  depend  upon.  There  was  only  one  year  in  the  past  twenty  that 
potatoes  have  not  paid  me  more  than  wheat  would  have  on  the  same  acreage. 
I  raise  for  the  seed  market  only  and  sold  this  year  (January,  1914)  at  1  cent 
and  1%  cents  per  pound.  Two  cars  of  this  lot  went  to  Sacramento  for  seed. 
I  pay  a  railroad  rate,  New  Era  to  San  Francisco,  of  25  cents  per  cwt.  I  consider 
that  60  cents  per  bushel  is  the  least  price  at  which  it  is  profitable  to  raise  and 
sell  seed  potatoes.  ...  A  good  crop  should  not  contain  more  than  15  ppr 


18  MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


cent  of  culls.  .  .  .  It  is  well  to  remember  that  light  deteriorates  the  food 
quality  of  potatoes,  if  you  are  raising  for  table  use,  though  it  does  not  damage 
them  for  seed  purposes.  Careful  handling  at  all  times  is  an  important  feature. 
If  you  are  located  too  far  from  a  railroad  there  is  no  profit  in  potatoes,  no 
matter  how  many  you  raise  nor  how  good  they  may  be.  ... 

W.  I.  Swank  of  Portland,  a  large  buyer  and  shipper  of  potatoes  in  Portland, 
and  manager  of  the  Onion  Growers'  Union,  on  February  5,  1915,  said : 

"The  principal  part  of  potato  buying  is  in  the  raising.  .  .  .  Buyers  always 
are  looking,  year  in  and  year  out,  for  the  finest  grades  of  stock.  An  extra  fancy 
grade  calls  for  potatoes  that  are  of  medium  size,  say  from  3  ^  to  6  inches  long,  of 
uniform  girth,  free  from  roughness  or  knots,  clean  and  of  good  color.  ...  In 
preparing  for  the  market  the  very  best  practice  is  to  use  a  new  Calcutta  sack — or 
a  No.  1  second-hand  one — holding  120  pounds  as  near  as  possible,  with  the  mouth 
slightly  open  and  showing  nice  potatoes.  The  first  appearance  is  of  great  aid  in 
making  a  sale.  ...  In  packing  it  is  a  very  good  plan  to  use  a  roll  of  old  sacks 
upon  which  to  jar  the  sack  in  filling  it ;  this  avoids  the  bruising  sometimes 
caused  by  jarring  against  a  hard  substance.  .  .  .  Packing  in  crates  probably 
would  not  pay  for  local  or  nearby  markets.  But  in  shipping  for  long  distances, 
as  to  the  Atlantic  Coast,  they  are  very  desirable  and  should  be  used.  The  crate 
should  hold  100  pounds  net,  and  be  of  octagon  shape  to  facilitate  ventilation. 
Each  crate  should  be  weighed  by  itself  to  insure  full  measure.  ...  In  storing 
potatoes  they  should  be  handled  carefully  to  avoid  bruising,  kept  clean,  free  from 
frost,  and  the  temperature  kept  at  from  40  to  60  degrees  Fahrenheit.  For  proper 
ventilation  they  should  be  piled  not  over  5  or  6  feet  deep,  and  preferably  in  a 
concrete  cellar  with  air  spaces  and  wooden  flooring  and  inside  walls.  A  very  good 
plan  to  insure  proper  ventilation  is  to  construct  square  ventilators,  6x6  inches, 
spaced  about  6  feet  apart,  running  across  the  floor  and  from  the  floor  to  the  ceil- 
ing. As' to  the  best  time  of  year  to  sell,  it  is  necessary  for  growers  to  be  of  differ- 
ent minds,  some  selling  direct  from  the  field,  some  holding  in  storage.  Broadly 
speaking,  if  you  have  a  fancy  grade  it  is  well  to  sell  in  the  Fall  if  the  price  is 
right ;  if  the  grade  is  inferior  it  is  better  to  store.  .  .  .  The  best  market 
usually  is  in  January,  February  and  early  March.  .  .  .  The  demand  for 
Early  Rose  seed  is  uncertain  and  limited  to  California  .  .  .  The  Pacific 
Coast  markets  do  not  take  to  round  potatoes,  while  Texas  and  the  South  like  that 
shape.  .  .  .  Idaho  and  Washington  ship  a  good  many  round  potatoes  and 
yet,  even  when  the  quality  is  the  same,  they  bring  15  to  20  cents  per  bushel 
less,  simply  on  account  of  the  shape.  ...  If  irrigation  is  properly  done,  I 
do  not  think  it  makes  any  difference  in  the  appearance  or  cooking  qualities  of 
the:  potato.  Seattle  considers  the  irrigated  Yakima  potato  the  very  best.  .  .  . 
I  am  a  great  advocate  of  deep  plowing  and  thorough  and  repeated  cultivation. 
California  sometimes  takes  half  of  its  seed  from  Oregon,  but  about 
every  third  year,  or  when  there  are  poor  markets,  they  use  their  own.  .  .  . 
There  always  is  a  considerable  demand  for  seed  of  early  varieties,  but  they 
demand  a  good  quality,  with  uniform  girth  and  inset  eyes,  and  a  smooth  bright 
skin.  ...  In  Oregon  we  ship  away  our  best  potatoes  and  use  what  is  left 
for  both  table  and  seed.  We  should  select  and  keep  our  very  best  for  seed  if 
we  are  to  improve  the  quality  and  quantity  of  our  yield.  .  .  .  Oregon  ship- 
ments to  Alaska  are  small,  though  there  is  some  demand  for  early  varieties  at 
good  prices  in  August,  if  the  quality  is  right.  .  .  .  We  have  no  local  market 
worth  considering  and  must  aim  to  ship  in  not  less  than  carload  lots  if  we  are  to 
meet  competition  successfully." 

Prof.  H.  D.   Scudder  of  O.  A.  C.  in  a  recent  talk  said : 

"Potatoes  are  a  cash  crop  and  for  that  reason  one  of  the  mo^t  valuable  to 
the  farmer.  .  .  .  One  of  the  chief  troubles  has  been  that  anyone  has  grown 
potatoes  in  any  old  way.  .  .  .  We  need  to  improve  the  quality,  especially 
for  seed.  At  present  it  would  be  difficult  to  buy  enough  good  and  pure  seed  in 
Oregon  to  plant  500  acres.  .  .  .  The  pi-eduction  in  Oregon  is  six  million 
bushels  a  year,  the  bulk  of  which  is  sold  for  table  use,  and  only  about  10  per 
cent  for  seed.  Our  greatest  market  with  the  largest  possibilities  is  right  at  home 
in  our  own  state.  ...  Of  the  Oregon  crop  at  present  25  to  35  per  cent 
is  culls." 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


19 


George  Hall,  commission  merchant  of  Eugene,  says: 

"The  only  requisite  for  Oregon  farmers  to  make  money  from  potatoes  is  to 
improve  the  quality  and  pack  carefully.  I  have  seen  a  thousand  men  get  rich 
raising  potatoes  on  rocky  farms  in  New  York  state — because  they  established 
and  maintained  quality.  When  we  establish  the  same  reputation  for  potatoes 
that  Hood  River  has  for  apples  we  can  sell  at  a  big  premium.  Government 
inspection  of  potatoes  is  far  more  important  than  for  apples.  If  properly 
approached  the  railroads  probably  would  be  willing  to  grant  reduced  freight 
rates  on  seed  potatoes,  as  is  done  in  Germany.  California  has  a  rigid  inspection 
law,  especially  against  scab,  and  seed  potatoes  from  there  have  sold  in  Eugene 
for  as  high  as  2  and  3  cents  a  pound.  We  should  be  selling  to  them  instead 
of  the  reverse." 

The  manager  of  the  Southern  Idaho  Producers'  Association  says : 

"Your  growers  never  will  make  a  success  until  they  learn  to  do  their  own 
marketing  cooperatively." 

G.  L.  Huey  of  Michigan,  writing  in  "The  Rural  New  Yorker,"  says: 

"My  belief,  which  is  backed  by  ten  years  of  experiments  and  tests,  is  that 
hill  selection  of  seed  at  digging  time  will  increase  the  yield,  give  a  more  uniform 
size,  eliminate  the  small  tubers  to  a  great  extent,  and  improve  the  quality.  Also 
that  the  planting  of  small  stock,  as  is  done  by  a  great  many  (the  undersized 
seconds  left  after  the  large  ones  have  been  taken  up),  will  cause  deterioration, 
for  in  almost  any  field  you  examine  you  will  find  a  few  hills  that  will  not 
produce  a  single  saleable  tuber.  ...  I  do  not  condemn  planting  small  tubers 
if  they  are  produced  from  good,  strong,  thrifty  hills.  They  will  not  deteriorate 
or  run  out,  but  are  just  as  desirable  for  seed  as  larger  tubers,  for  they  are  just 
a  later  setting  and  therefore  good  seed.  It  is  poor  economy  in  raising  potatoes 
to  sell  all  the  best  and  plant  the  residue.  After  five  years  of  hill  selection  of  seed, 
I  sold  my  entire  crop  each  year,  getting  5  and  10  cents  above  the  market,  the 
buyers  using  my  potatoes  to  face  cars  with.  I  could  always  dispose  of  my  load 
even  when  there  was  a  shortage  of  cars  or  the  market  overstocked,  and  I  never 
had  a  load  run  over  the  screen  as  sorts,  which  is  practiced  here.  .  .  .  Some 
years  I  have  seen  as  many  as  15  bushels  of  large  tubers  thrown  out  of  a  load 
of  60  or  75  bushels,  then  another  year  the  same  production  of  small  ones,  and 
all  this  can  be  eliminated  by  hill  selection  of  seed." 

The  Oregon  potato  crop  is  practically  all  marketed  at  Portland,  Seattle  and 
San  Francisco,  all  the  Garnet  Chile,  Early  Rose  and  other  varieties  raised  as  a 
seed  crop  being  marketed  in  the  last  named  city. 

TABLE  No.   12 — Following  are  the  prices  for  ten  years,  on  December  1,  for 
Portland,  Oregon,  and  for  the  United  States: 


Year 

Portland 

D.  S. 

Year 

Portland 

U.  8. 

1900 

45 

43 

1906 

56 

51 

1901 

70 

47 

1907  

56 

62 

1902 

55 

47 

1908 

68 

70 

1903 

50 

51 

1909        

60 

55 

CQ 

AC 

1905        

60 

62 

Average  

58.1 

57.3 

There  are  no  figures  available  showing  the  amounts  of  potatoes  exported  to 
other  states  from  Oregon,  or  to  Oregon  from  other  states.  The  Southern  Pacific 
Railroad  states  that  they  shipped  out  of  the  state,  over  their  main  lines,  between 
March  1,  1913,  and  March  31,  1914,  2,051  carloads;  over  their  Spokane,  Portland 
&  Seattle  lines,  3,723,223  pounds.  The  O.-W.  R.  &  N.  shipped  from  the  state, 
from  July,  1913,  to  April,  1914,  both  inclusive,  17,312  whole  tons.  The  amounts 
of  potatoes  shipped  from  Portland  by  water  were:  1910,  3,388  sacks;  1911, 
12,073  sacks;  1912,  17,093  sacks;  1913,  12,990  sacks;  1914,  43,172  sacks. 


20  MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 

COMPETITION  FOR  OREGON  POTATOES 

In  addition  to  the  foregoing,  some  of  the  competitive  figures  and  conditions 
Oregon  must  face  under  the  present  situation  are  shown  by  the  following  table : 

(a)    TABLE  No.    13. 


Countiy  or  State 

Average 
yield  in  hu. 
per  ;icre 
1912 

Average 
yield  in  bu. 
perjore 

Average 
farm  price 
receiver], 
cents  per  bu. 
Dec.  1.  1912. 

Average 
farm  price 
received, 
cents  perbu, 
Dec.  1,  1913 

Average 
cost  of 
production 
per  bu. 

Germany 

223 

Av.  for  10 
\rs  °3  67 

Maine    

198 

220 

55 

53 

30 

Minnesota     

135 

110 

28 

52 

30  3 

Michigan     .  . 

105 

96 

41 

53 

25  5 

Idaho     

185 

170 

29 

50 

25  5 

Washington      

167 

123 

36 

60 

19  3 

California 

130 

119 

65 

70 

44  4 

Oregon    

155 

135 

31 

58 

21  5 

United   States 

113  4 

90  4 

50  5 

68  7 

21  2 

From  July  1,  1913,  to  May  1,  1914,  Maine  shipped  37,200  carloads 
out  of  that  state,  and  there  remained  approximately  3, OTTO  carloads  to  be  disposed 
of.  As  a  carload  varies  from  600  to  650  bushels,  there  were  24  to  25  million 
bushels  sold  out  of  the  state,  and  probably  seven  million  used  within  the  state 
for  seed,  food  and  starch. 

This,  at  an  average  price  of  30  cents  per  bushel,  would  mean  an  income  to 
the  state  from  this  source  alone  of  $7,500,000  from  other  communities. 

Approximate  frieght  rates  from  Idaho  are:  Per  cwt.  to  Texas  points,  55  to 
73  cents;  Missouri  River,  45;  Mississippi  River,  50;  Tennessee,  60;  Chicago,  60; 
Arizona,  75 ;  San  Francisco,  40  ;  Twin  Falls  to  San  Francisco,  66 ;  Twin  Falls 
to  Portland,  Oregon,  38. 

Approximate  rail  freight  rates  per  cwt.  from  Oregon  are :  Eastern  Oregon 
to  Texas,  65  cents ;  Willamette  Valley  to  Texas,  75  ;  Willamette  Valley  to  San 
Francisco,  26%;  Portland  to  San  Francisco,  25;  Redmond  to  Portland,  21;  La 
Grande  to  Portland,  19%. 

Freight  rates  are  another  important  item  affecting  competition.  The  ocean 
rate  from  Germany  to  New  York,  Galveston,  New  Orleans  and  other  Atlantic 
seaports  is  $3.89  per  ton.  The  rate  from  Portland,  via  the  Panama  Canal  to 
the  same  points  would  be  $6  per  ton.  From  Willamette  Valley  points  the  freight 
to  Portland  by  rail  ranges  from  8  to  15  cents  per  cwt.  ;  from  Portland  to  the 
Atlantic  Coast,  by  water,  30c,  which  would  give  a  rate  of  $8  a  ton  against 
Germany's  $3.89 — or  more  than  double.  The  rail  rate  from  Colorado  to  the 
Southwest  is  70  cents  per  cwt.,  from  Portland  75  cents.  With  potatoes  at  60 
cents  per  bushel  it  would  cost  Colorado' $1.30  to  lay  them  down  in  Galveston, 
for  instance.  Portland,  via  the  Panama  Canal,  could  deliver  at  the  same  point 
for  $1.  Idaho  has  a  rail  rate  of  38  cents  per  cwt  to  Portland,  which  would  make 
her  potatoes,  f.  o.  b.  Galveston,  $1.28  (on  the  same  basis  of  60  cents  per  bushel 
at  shipping  point).  Eastern  Oregon  and  Washington  would  be  on  about  a  par 
with  Idaho.  The  Willamette  Valley  and  Southwestern  Oregon  have  an  advantage 
over  the  Yakima  district  of  about  10  cents.  In  all  rail  shipments  the  country 
east  of  the  mountains,  and  especially  Michigan  and  Minnesota,  have  an  advan- 
tage in  freight  rates  over  Western  Oregon,  but  the  latter  has  the  advantage,  by 
reason  of  the  Panama  Canal,  to  Atlantic  Coast  cities. 

(See   O.   A.    C.    Bulletin.) 

George  H.  Brown  says : 

"When  Willamette  Valley  Burbanks  are  selling  for  $1.60  a  buhel,  Salinas  Bur- 
banks  bring  as  high  as  $2.10  for  the  same  quality,  because  of  the  reputation  that 
has  been  established  by  the  latter  and  the  close  selection  practiced.  .  .  .  Oregon's 
most  serious  rival  in  the  potato  business  is  Idaho.  We  really  cannot  compete 
with  her  on  any  large  scale.  She  has  deep  soil  that  is  ideal  for  potato  culture 
and  plenty  of  it,  irrigation  that  gives  her  water  when  she  wants  it,  and  none 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES  21 


when  she  does  not ;  she  can  grow  alfalfa  as  we,  as  a  state,  cannot,  and  there  is 
nothing  better  than  alfalfa  to  prepare  and  restore  potato  soil ;  and  she  has  the 
advantage  in  freight  rates.  All  this  makes  the  competition  of  Idaho  a  serious 
matter  to  the  Oregon  grower,  but  still  nothing  to  be  discouraged  about  if  he 
will  raise  and  keep  up  the  quality  of  the  Oregon  potato.  But  don't  go  into  the 
potato  business — or  any  other,  for  that  matter — unless  you  like  it." 

W.   I.   Swank  says: 

".  .  .  To  the  Oregon  grower  the  competition  of  Idaho  is  a  very  serious 
factor.  .  .  .  They  have  large  tracts  of  excellent  potato  land  and  irrigation 
gives  them  a  practical  certainty  of  a  good  crop,  irrespective  of  the  weather. 
Not  only  can  they  put  the  water  on  when  they  want  it,  but  they  can  keep  it  off 
at  the  proper  time  so  that  in  digging  the  crop  comes  clean  from  the  soil.  Because 
of  water  regulation  they  have  a  heavier  yield  than  we  do  as  a  rule.  About  the 
only  advantage  Oregon  has  over  Idaho  in  natural  conditions  is  that  they  are 
subject  to  heavy  frosts  occasionally.  .  .  .  Idaho  also  has  freight  advantages 
to  the  south  and  east  in  rail  shipments.  They  can  ship  to  Texas,  for  instance, 
at  from  45  to  65  cents  a  cwt.,  which  is  11  cents  less  than  the  Oregon  rate,  so 
they  practically  shut  us  out.  They  also  can  and  do  make  heavy  shipments  to 
California  and  undersell  Oregon.  .  .  .  Last  season  (1914)  the  Idaho  crop 
was  about  4,000  cars,  against  Oregon's  3,000.  This  season  they  probably  will 
ship  5,000  to  6,000  cars,  against  our  2,000.  ...  A  large  percentage  of  the 
Idaho  crop  is  sold  through  associations,  local  z-.nd  general,  and  this  is  by  all  odds 
the  very  best  plan,  especially  when  each  grower  puts  his  name  on  his  sacks  and 
so  establishes  a  reputation.  .  .  .  The  majority  of  the  Alaska  supply  comes 
from  Seattle  and  consists  of  early  potatoes  from  the  White  River  District.  .  .  . 
A  large  percentage  of  Oregon  potatoes  are  inferior,  those  from  Idaho  and  Wash- 
ington averaging  much  better  quality." 

(See  preceding  and  succeeding  chapters,  this  bulletin,  and  also  Tables  No. 
1,  3  and  4.  See  reports  on  conditions  in  other  Western  states  on  preceding  pages 
and  chapter  on  "Possible  Markets,"  page  27,  as  well  as  the  following.) 

COST  OF  PRODUCTION 

The  following  table  shows  average  costs  of  producing  a  bushel  of  potatoes — 
exculsive  of  rental  or  other  value  of  land,  and  exclusive  of  transportation  expense 
— in  various  countries,  states  and  sections.  Compiled  from  government  reports, 
statements  from  state  and  country  officials,  and  other  sources.  While  these 
figures  have  been  gathered  with  all  possible  care  and  are  as  accurate  as  may 
be,  they  cannot  be  relied  upon  absolutely  in  all  cases,  owing  to  the  meagerness 
of  the  information  available,  and  the  wide  fluctuations  in  cost  of  production, 
even  in  the  same  district.  They  are,  however,  approximately  correct  for  the 
purpose  of  comparison  one  with  the  other.  Note  that  these  figures  are  averages 
and  therefore  indicate  a  higher  cost  than  would  be  the  case  with  experienced 
growers ;  for  instance,  the  cost  per  bushel  in  Idaho,  under  good  practice,  is  less 
than  20  cents,  though  the  average  of  figures  secured,  as  shown  by  the  table, 
is  25.5. 

(See  O.   A.  C.   Bulletin.) 


22 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


!*« 

CO            T* 

in      in 

M<        00        CO 

S^i    ?^ 

OS          -* 

rH         i—  ' 

05        rH        -*' 

i! 

1  1 

C^5         CSJ 

°£ 

>,       : 

I       1 

ctf       ^ 

^ 

"3        • 

-r 

S 

c 

>        I 

•     £     '" 

5 

0          , 

?              : 

J            ^ 

cc 

I 

•4—               CO 

s  e 

£§•    j 

«  I  I 

:     £ 

~      o 

<S  ^    .° 

! 

«     2d 

1  6 

SJ  I 

aii 

c 
a> 

v.  « 

T-l            CO 

in      t>      ir 

>     os         o      in 

' 

sx  s* 

c<i      o 

in      TH      « 

)      •*          co      in 

G 

Qi 

CO        CO 

(M        CO        T- 

H         M<               CO         (M 

*Gn    ^ 

0 

o    - 

0 

OS 

cq 

•0 

I  I 

^     !•= 

j        €«• 

'.    : 

Oj 

|    || 

Vi 

C 

& 

"g.     | 

cd 

1    ?       ^ 

g       ro^       G 

b£ 

g 

W    '     C 

£         t*          J5 

O        O  ^       .C 

c' 

0 

1  1 

ilg 

i|fj 

Od 

;! 

*~  * 

<o      in 

os      co 

rH 

0 

X   ^ 

o     •*' 

06      o-      t>- 

co      co      in 

1} 

2 

**        OS        t- 

t-      t1      co 

1 

a 

g 

-i 

''         CC         «2 

without 

3 

^    'c 

'          C^          U 

•0       d 

• 

§ 

1$    '5 

.2    "E    -0 

°S        N        c 

+-> 

c 

«     Js 

™           Q           C^ 

^        "p         -J 

c 

^    > 

o   S   < 

H  <:  M 

8 

i       s-* 

cj      co 

CO              00 

0       00        OS       0        (M 

os 

Tt< 

-  s£ 

rH       in 

co'          t-^ 

o     in     oo     o     o 

Qi 

e<i      (M 

CJ                     T—  * 

(M        (M        rH        CO        •**• 

O 

*  * 

\       o1 

g    o  ! 

°    i      M        !                : 

05 
CO 

£ 

:      »2 

1  II 

||  |  3 

'i 

0 

*PH 

p^            co 

bJC 

cc 

1     S 

"c    ^  '5, 

la   |    £ 

j          J5 

»2           CH  .S* 

g-M                      • 

c 

M     5 

-M         <D  TO 

02 

^ 

*^<        ^  »^« 

-}  .-H               O              ^ 

0 

•** 

T3      ^ 

f™1  M 

_d  ^r                   ^         rti         O 

0 

1 

o 

1  1 

1  is 

|       |    |-  I     « 

I 
& 

S-   09 

05 

0                       T»« 

10      t-      co      o      m 

'O 

a| 

1-J 

CO               i-l 

in      os      "jJ      co      oo 

<M        1-1        CM        CO        (M 

o>v 

J} 

ss 

C?             Q) 

•  to         bJD 

S  so 

1 

*2 

>  0> 

2    g 

.  O>             0) 

•§S                        ;      c. 
bOO)              rt      csj     -g 

4 

I1 

SH    rf                 03 

3 

s^     111 

M 

1       f-, 

U                    ^         GJ        iS 

Locality 

Germany- 
Saxony, 
5  yea 

"g«     |« 

>:g       5  o    o 

§  ^       S        o        CS        rj 
Xlft         '•            V         £         W 

1      §  !   3  2 

03         3        4J         ^H 

w   a  o   m 

« 

H 

MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


23 


g 

0 
0       0 

ot~ooooiooo 

OlO         w 

coio      +jOJ      10 

I 

5  £ 

I 

•f.-         U 

ii 

10 
t-        rH 

SSSSSSg* 

"*  **       K  co      co 

fe£ 

£.£ 

1-1        OO 

0  CO  •*  CO  •<*  t~  10  CO 

co  oo*      C  co'      a"  10 

CO  CO         ^  CO         rH  10 

c 
jb 

cc 

00        CO 
rH        °° 
W9- 

o  co  id  co'  co'  t-^  ^  co 
«*• 

CO  t-        gj 

COrH         4JO         CO 

coco     r")1^     r-i»o 

C 

!>•         CO 
r~*         t- 

o  co'  id  <M'  co*  c^  •*'  <M' 

OCO         73 
00  05         £  tO         05 

oid       Sco      oo  -HI 
coco      gei      «-i«o 

||| 

10 

1<  rH  01  CO  00  10  ^  0 

COOS         oj 

ioco      *-i-«f      oo 

IjJ 

00        10 

CO 

rH  (M  CO  CO  CO  -^  CO  rH 

•fr 

IO  rH          Co         lOrH 

co  co      .Sr  co      e>i  t- 

ja.uji  iddis 

IO 
(M         CO 

o     od 

eo4ideacQi0co«>4 

co*  o*       ?  co      o  co 

CO  rH        .T  CO         CO  IO 

"88BS!Kj° 

10       0 
rH         £*! 

t-O<3OOOCOOOlOt>- 
rH  CO  ^t<  CO*  C<i  id  •*'  rH 

1  S  ^ 

Q 

co 

(M  O  •*  CO  O  rH  t—  O 

oco       w 

III 

"      £ 

lOCOlOCOCO-thCOrH 

o*  cd     g  t>:    co  o 

|1| 

t- 

oo     o 

rHCOOOOCOCOlOO 
0  t-  05  10  00  t-  00  CO 

o*  -^  id  cq*  co*  co  co  c<i 

COI>-         73 

OOO5         4-jrH         CO 

od  rj!       C  oo      id  co 
co  co      _^  co      co  10 

V*              O 

|I 

c  5 

0 
00        CO 

~\     •*& 

11        CO 

COCOCOCOrHt-OSt- 

cocoidcoco'idco'rH 

€yC- 

oo      -2<o     co 

O5  IO          C  ^         rH  CO 

««     £co     .,10 

:    :    :       :    : 

«     2    -    - 

3      •  '      cd      rt 

*•  .       2    2    -a 

-«    «               8 

2      2       tUD       &JD      •§ 
c       C       C       C       3 

g 

Yield  per  acre,  bushels... 
Value  of  land  per  acre... 

•3^3                "~"  o 

'§  M       '  C  bc|| 
•-  .2     hoz!  c  >  ^ 
|E     cca-*:^^ 

g  g  f  1  ^ 

S:  S  1  1  I 

l  !  .1  J  ? 

7",      o      "^      3)      3 

l.if  t-  a.? 

-1.-  5  5  & 

1^1    ||6l-3 

«-d  :?:ss 

•u      +j      co      oa     -^ 

O       O       O       O       <A 

b>     t*     U     U     t> 

24  MARKETS  FOR   POTATOES 


The  following,  supplied  June  2,  1914,  by  Joseph  Begin,  Superintendent  of  the 
Experimental  Station  of  the  Federal  Ministry  of  Agriculture,  of  Quebec,  Canada, 
is  given,  not  only  for  the  value  of  the  figures  themselves,  but  also  as  an  example 
of  thorough  cost  keeping  that  might  well  be  followed  by  every  grower  of 
potatoes : 

TABLE   No.    16 — Cost   of   Producing   Potatoes,   according   to    data   from    the    best 
practical   growers  in   this  district   for   the   past   three   years. 

Rent   of   land   ....$   4.00 

Cost  of  10  pounds  clover,   at  24   cents  2.40 

Barnyard  manure,  18  tons  at  $1.00   (Mi  exhausted  in  1  year)   6.00 

Commercial  fertilizer,  300  pounds  at  $20   (  %  exhausted  in  1  year)   2.90 

Plowing  of  land  in   spring 2.50 

Disc   harrowing  twice   80 

Harrowing  once  with  a  smoothing  harrow  20 

Drilling,  2  %  hours,  at  30  cents  per  hour  .75 

Seed,  25  bushels,  at  50  cents  12.50 

Cutting  seed,  one  day  1.60 

Planting  seed,  one  day  1.60 

Covering,   1VI   hours,  at  40  cents  50 

Harrowing  twice  with  a  smoothing  harrow  .40 

Cultivating  six  times,   15  hours,  at  30  cents  4.50 

Hoeing  once,  one  day  1.60 

Poison,   Paris  green    1.50 

Bluestone,    50   pounds,   at   10   cents  5.00 

Spraying  with  poison  three  times  with  horses  2.40 

Spraying   with   Bordeaux    2.40 

Digging,  three  hours,  at  40  cents  1.20 

Picking  up  potatoes,  2%  days  at  $1.60  4.00 

Storing,  4  loads,  4  hours,  at  40  cents 1.60 

Sorting  and  marketing,  1  man,  4  days,  at  $1.60  6.40 

Team,  2  days,  at  24  cents  per  hour  4.80 

Team,  2  days,  at  24  cents  per  hour  4.80 

Wear  and  tear  on  machinery  and  interest  on  money  1.25 

Total    .$72.80 

Average  cost  of  production,  per  bushel  243 

Average  farm   price  received,  per  bushel   40 

The  above  data  is  for  a  300  bushels  per  acre  crop,  which  is  considered  the 
best  average  crop  obtained  on  the  best  farms  in  this  part  of  the  country.  How- 
ever, this  is  about  25  per  cent  over  the  general  yield  of  potatoes  on  the  whole. 

Mr.  George  H.  Brown  of  New  Era,  Oregon,  one  of  the  best  and  most  suc- 
cessful growers  of  potatoes  in  the  state,  with  over  twenty  years  experience  in 
raising  and  marketing  this  crop,  gives  the  following  as  his  average  cost  of  pro- 
duction per  acre,  exclusive  of  rental  value  of  land,  and  basing  it  on  wages  of 
$2  per  day  for  a  man  and  $4  per  day  for  man  and  team.  Average  yield  150 
bushels  per  acre. 

TABLE  No.  17. 

Land  plaster    (gypsum),    50   pounds   $  0.25 

Plowing,    twice    3.00 

Harrowing,    five    times    1.25 

Disking,    twice   80 

Cultivating,    five   times   3.75 

Seed,   10   bushels  5.00 

Seed,    cutting   50 

Seed,    planting   1.00 

Digging    „ 1.00 

Picking   up    *- 3.00 

Sacks,    60    3.60 

Sorting  and  sacking,  at  10  cents  per  sack  6.00 

Total  cost  of  production  of  150  bushels  $29.15 

Cost  per  bushel  

As  Mr.  Brown's  farm  and  warehouse  are  located  directly  upon  the  railroad 
his  cost  of  loading  on  cars  runs  from  a  half  to  one  cent  per  sack.  For  an 
ordinary  haul  about  5  cents  per  sack  would  have  to  be  added.  Mr.  Brown  sells 
almost  exclusively  for  seed  and  states  his  average  profit  to  be  $40  to  $50  an  acre. 

Howard  Dalton,  of  Willard  City,  Utah,  has  earned  the  title  of  "Boy  Champion 
Potato  Grower."  On  one-half  acre  he  raised  360  bushels,  which  he  sold  for 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES  25 


$187.77,  or  52  cents  a  bushel.  The  cost  of  growing  was:  Value  of  manure,  $2; 
spreading  manure,  $4;  plowing,  $1 ;  harrowing,  six  times,  $1.50;  leveling,  $1; 
cost  of  seed,  450  pounds,  $5.20;  planting  seed,  $2;  cultivating,  two  times,  $1; 
irrigating,  three  times,  $1.50;  weeding,  once,  $1.50;  harvesting,  $18;  rent  on 
land,  $8.  Total  cost,  $46.70.  A  net  profit  of  $141.07. 

H.  H.  Weatherspoon,  district  commissioner  of  the  State  Board  of  Horticulture, 
at  Elgin,  Oregon,  gives  the  following  cost  items  for  a  production  of  75  sacks 
per  acre  on  land  valued  at  $50  per  acre : 

TABLE  No.    18. 

Plowing,    planting,    cultivating,    cents   per   cwt $  0.21 

Digging  and  picking  10 

Sacks,  each  08 

Cost   of   actual   production 39 

Delivery  on  cars  05 

Freight   to    San    Francisco    35 

Profit  to  farmer,  5  per  cent  on  his  investment  10 

Total     $  0.89 

Average  actual  cost,  per  bushel 234 

"This  is  very  close  figuring  and  about  an  average  for  Oregon,  and  means  a 
cost  of  $71.10  an  acre  to  produce  150  bushels  or  9,000  pounds.  Prices  lower 
than  this  will  put  all  Eastern  Oregon  and  Southern  Idaho  out  of  business,  as 
they  would  be  compelled  to  irrigate.  These  figures  can  be  relied  on  for  all 
territory  east  of  the  Blue  Mountain  Range." 

The  following  figures  of  detailed  cost  of  production  may  be  compared  with 
Table  No.  18: 

TABLE  No.   19 — Statement   by  Dairy  Inspector,  Augusta,  Maine,  May  20,  19H,  of 

average  cost  of  production  in  that  section. 
Average  yield  per  acre,  285  bushels;  average  value  of  land  per  acre,  $50  to  $150. 

Commercial    fertilizer    $30.00 

Applying   fertilizer   2.00 

Plowing    2.85 

Harrowing     4.00 

Seed,  14  bushels,  at  80  cents  per  bushel  11.20 

Cutting  and  planting 5.75 

Cultivating    7.00 

Spraying    5.75 

Harvesting     14.00 

Grading  and  sacking  12.00 

Total  cost,  excluding  land  value  or  rental  $94.55 

Cost  per  bushel,  excluding  land  value  331 

K.  H.  Grubb   (i)    is  authority  for  the  following  Idaho  figures: 

TABLE  No.  20. 
Average  yield  per  acre,  150  bushels;  average  value  of  land,  about  $125.00. 

Plowing    $  3.00 

Harrowing     75 

Floating     1.00 

Seed,  average  700  pounds,  at  2  cents  per  pound  14.00 

Planting     2.50 

Irrigating,   first  year 5.00 

Cultivating,  3  times  at  50  cents  each  1.50 

D'gging    1.50 

Picking,  at  4  cents  per  bushel  6.00 

Sacks,   75  at  7   cents  each  5.25 

Hauling  to  pit 2.00 

Total,    excluding   land   or    rental   value,    interest,    taxes   or 

other  overhead  expenses  $44.00 

Cost  per   bushel,    exclusive   as   above   293 


26 


MARKETS  FOR   POTATOES 


TABLE  No.  21 — The  Manager  Southern  Idaho  Producers'  Association,  under  date 

of  June  6,  191 k,  gives   the   cost   there  as: 

Average  yield  per  acre,  150  bushels. 

Breaking  alfalfa  land,   fall  plowing  $  4.00 

Breaking  alfalfa  land,   spring  plowing  2.15 

Harrowing,   3    times 20 

Seed,  1  to  1%  tons  per  acre,  at  50  cents  per  bushel  25.00 


Cutting 

Planting     

Fertilizing 

Harrowing   after   planting   

Five  times  over  with  cultivator 

Digging    

Picking  up,  5  cents  per  cwt. 


75 
2.50 
.20 
40 

10.00 
3.00 
_      ..  .  4.50 

Sacks,    6   cents  per  cwt 5.40 

Hauling  to  train,  50  cents  per  ton  75 


Total $58.85 

Cost   per    bushel    392 

(Note  that  in  the  above  the  fertilizing  cost  is  only  for  spreading,  and  does 
not  include  value  of  fertilizer  itself.  Also  that  150  bushels  per  acre  is  a  low 
estimate,  it  being  nearer  200  bushels  usually.  At  the  latter  figure  the  average 
cost  per  bushel  would  be  29.2  cents.  The  state  average  for  cost  per  bushel, 
compiled  from  a  number  of  statements,  is  25.5  cents,  while  some  producers  claim 
as  low  as  17  cents.) 

TABLE  No.   22 — L.  F.   Shanklin    of  Lonipoc,  California,  gives  cost  for  that 

district  as: 
Average  yield  per  acre,  260  bushels. 

Rental    of    land    $30.00 

Seed,  400  pounds,  at  1  %  cents  per  pound  6.00 

Plowing  and   preparation   5.00 

Cultivating  twice,  hoeing  once  1.00 

Digging  and   picking  3.00 

Sacks,   5   cents  each,   and   sacking   5   cents  10.00 

Hauling    1.00 

Total,  including  land  value   $56.00 

Average  cost  per  bushel,    including  land  value 215 

Total,  excluding  land  value  26.00 

Average  cost  per  bushel,   excluding  land  value 10 

(Even  if  the  above  production  per  acre  were  cut  in  half,  it  would  give  an 
average  cost  per  bushel  of  only  20  cents,  or  about  the  same  as  Oregon.) 

DeWitt  C.  Poole,  Jr.,  Deputy  Consul  General,  Berlin,  Germany,  June  9,  1914, 
gives  the  following  average  costs  for  the  five  years,  1908-13,  which  are  exclusive 
of  land  values  or  interest : 

(a)   TABLE  No.  24.- — Wholesale  Prices  in  Cities,  December  12,  191}. 


Locality 

Planting  and 
cultivation 

Harvest  i  HH 

Cost  per  aero 

Coat  per 
bushel 

Province    of    Saxony  
Mecklenburg             

$11.14 
8.32 

$   7.79 
10.30 

$18.93 
18.62 

$0.219 
.21 

Silesia 

10  42 

7.17 

17  59 

174 

Kingdom    of    Saxony  

6.96 

6.28 

13.24 

.255 

MARKET  PRICES 

(a)   TABLE  No.  24 — Wholesale  Prices  in  Cities,  December  ^2, 
City  Cents  per  bu. 

Pittsburg  43  to 

Dallas    80  to 

Denver     90  to  115 

St.   Louis   38  to 

Cincinnati      40  to 

Chicago    30  to 

New    York    42  to 

Kansas    City    40  to 

Detroit     -100  to  105 

Minneapolis    45  to  50 

Cleveland     33  to 

Jacksonville    92  to  100 

Philadelphia      42  to    62 


m. 
50 

San   Francisco  — 
Delta    Burbanks 

Per  cwt. 
75  to  100 

85 

Salinas     

135  to  150 

15 

Oregon 

100  to  125 

52 

A  Q 

Los  Angeles,   Burbanks 

115  to  140 

43 
67 

Los  Angeles,  Idaho  Rurals... 
Portland     

...105  to  120 
...   65  to    75 

56 
05 
50 

45 

Seattle 

Per  ton 
..$13  tn  $17 

MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


27 


TABLE  No.  25.     Prices  Paid  for  Potatoes  to  Producers  in  Oregon. 
(Cents  per  bushel  of  60  pounds.) 


1911 


1912 


1913 


1914 


Average 


January                             

73 

61 

31 

53 

54Ms 

February          .          

71 

65 

32 

55 

56 

March 

80 

78 

35 

50 

61 

April 

83 

102 

36 

43 

66 

May 

98 

88 

20 

37 

61 

June                                        

137 

75 

22 

40 

68  V2 

July                     

154 

75 

29 

86 

August 

120 

65 

60 

82 

September          

84 

50 

55 

63 

October        

76 

38 

58 

57 

November 

64 

36 

52 

51 

December            

67 

31 

58 

52 

Average  

92 

64 

40 

.... 

64 

TABLE  No.  26.     Prices  to  Producers. 


Mavl. 
1913 

Mav  1, 
1914 

December  1, 
1912 

December  1, 
1913 

Idaho     

$0.30 

$0.48 

$0.29 

$0.50 

Washington 

.32 

.42 

.36 

.60 

Oregon         .          

.20 

.37 

.31 

.58 

California 

.42 

.65 

.65 

.70 

United   States 

•  48M> 

.714 

California:  Prices  to  producer,  in  cents  per  bushel:  1908,  77;  1910,  85; 
1911,  90;  1912,  65. 

Idaho:  First  shipments  bring  about  50  cents  per  cwt.  The  average  net  prices 
to  growers,  by  months,  is:  September,  $1;  October  75  cents;  November,  77 
cents;  December,  67  cents;  January,  90  cents;  February,  75  cents;  March, 
63  cents;  April,  70  cents;  May,  80  cents  per  bushel.  In  November,  1914,  potatoes 
were  selling  at  30  cents  per  bushel,  f.  o.  b.  shipping  points. 

(j)  The  average  price  on  New  York  farms  for  47  years — 1866  to  1912 — 
was  53  cents  per  bushel ;  and  the  average  wholesale  price  in  cities — 1850  to 
1913 — was  65  cents. 

POSSIBLE  MARKETS  FOR  OREGON  POTATOES 

It  is  stated  that  plans  are  being  matured  for  shipping  to  the  Atlantic  Coast 
via  the  Panama  Canal  from  Portland,  and  that  a  market  there  can  be  created. 

The  Department  of  Commerce,  New  Orleans,  reports : 

"Oregon  potatoes  reach  Louisiana  only  when  Michigan,  Wisconsin  and  Minne- 
sota are  exceptionally  high  in  price,  the  latter  being  most  favored  and  being 
sold  to  commission  merchants,  laid  down  in  New  Orleans,  at  $1.50  per  cwt. 
Washington  and  Colorado  potatoes  bring  $1.45  cwt.,  f.  o.  b.  New  Orleans.  The 
freight  from  Oregon  is  prohibitive  except  under  unusual  conditions."  (This 
before  Panama  Canal,  through  which  rate  may  be  provided  at  30  cents  cwt.) 

E.  E.  Judd,  the  Department  of  Commerce  agent  at  New  Orleans,  reports, 
January  28,  1915: 

"Some  of  the  principal  potato  dealers  in  this  city  inform  me  that  in  the  past 
Bermuda  potatoes  have  come  into  the  New  Orleans  market  for  about  two  weeks 
in  April  of  each  year,  but  that  during  the  past  two  years  no  shipments  have  been 
made.  They  state  that  Bermuda  supplies  a  new  early  potato  that  sells  at  about 
$5  per  barrel,  and  enters  the  market  between  the  seasons  of  domestic  potatoes. 
The  production  of  early  potatoes  in  this  immediate  vicinity  has  increased  so 
rapidly  that  within  the  last  two  years  the  Bermuda  article  has  been  practically 
driven  out  of  this  market.  .  .  .  The  home  grown  potatoes  come  on  the 
market  in  April  and  last  until  about  the  middle  of  July.  From  then  until  about 
the  tirst  of  December  supplies  are  obtained  from  Oklahoma,  and  after  that  from 


28  MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 

Wisconsin  and  Michigan.  The  latter  cost  about  60  cents  per  bushel,  sacked, 
laid  down  in  New  Orleans.  These  potatoes  pay  a  rate  of  42  y%  cents  per  cwt,, 
or  about  30  cents  per  bushel.  They  are  of  excellent  quality  and  fill  the  market 
needs  satisfactorily.  Oregon  potatoes  come  into  this  market  by  rail,  though 
the  rate  is  75  cents  per  cwt.  This  only  has  occurred  when  the  Western  potatoes 
come  very  cheap  and  those  of  Michigan  and  Wisconsin  are  high  in  price.  Mr. 
Kohlman,  of  Kohlman  Bros.  &  Sugarman,  who  are  among  the  largest  dealers  in 
potatoes  in  this  city,  is  rather  skeptical  as  to  the  success  of  shipping  Oregon 
potatoes  into  this  port  by  water  (via  the  Panama  Canal).  He  says  that  early 
potatoes  would  be  likely  to  spoil  en  route,  and  very  late  potatoes  would  be  likely 
to  sprout.  He  believes  that  shipments  of  sound  matured  potatoes  might  come 
through  satisfactorily,  but  that  such  potatoes  would  reach  his  market  at  the 
height  of  the  season,  when  prices  would  be  low.  He  would,  however,  be  glad  to 
get  in  touch  with  possible  shippers  who  would  be  willing  to  quote  a  price  laid 
clown  in  New  Orleans  for  sound  potatoes,  the  shipper  taking  all  the  risks  of 
spoiling  en  route.  ...  I  would  be  glad  to  supply  the  names  of  other  com- 
mission merchants  in  this  city  if  so  desired." 

One  of  the  features  of  the  New  York  City  market  is  the  high  prices  com- 
manded— an  average  of  $1.44  per  bushel  ($6  per  barrel) — by  the  Bermuda 
potatoes.  (Compare  this  with  Oregon's  average  of  58  cents — more  than  double.) 
The  freight  rate,  by  water,  from  Bermuda  to  New  York  is  50  cents  per  barrel. 
The  first  shipment  arrives  in  New  York  about  December  1,  and  consists  of  the 
second  crop  grown  in  Bermuda.  The  next  crop  begins  to  arrive  in  April  and 
the  first  of  May.  The  stock  received  during  the  winter  months  is  known  as  the 
fall  grown  crop  and  is  a  red-skinned  round  potato.  The  spring  crop  consists 
largely  of  the  Bliss-Triumph  variety.  Shipment  is  made  in  barrels.  These  Ber- 
muda potatoes  command  a  special  price  because  of  their  high  quality  for  table 
use,  none  of  them  being  imported  for  seed,  and  also  because  they  mature  very 
early  in  the  spring,  or  in  the  latter  part  of  our  winter,  and  so  reach  the  market 
when  prices  are  highest  and  domestic  supply  lowest.  (See  Table  No.  3.) 

Brazil  needs  and  imports  large  quantities  of  potatoes.  Before  the  war  most 
of  her  supply  came  from  France — now  they  must  come  from  other  countries. 
Experimental  shipments  from  Oregon  to  Brazil  and  other  South  American  coun- 
tries might  lead  the  way  to  the  establishment  of  a  regular  and  profitable  market 
with  that  country.  Present  prices  (October,  1914)  are  $1.45  to  $1.60  per  case 
of  66  pounds,  including  cost,  insurance  and  freight  to  Santos.  Each  box  must 
contain  66  pounds,  and  great  care  must  be  taken  in  packing.  Wooden  cases, 
as  light  as  possible  to  stand  the  rough  handling  of  ocean  freight  should  be  used, 
and  they  should  be  securely  strapped  with  wooden  staves  or  steel  wire.  The 
planks  must  be  wide  enough  apart  to  permit  thorough  ventilation.  (See  pages 
15-19.) 

THE  INDUSTRIAL  USE  OF  POTATOES 

In  the  industrial  utilization  of  potatoes,  manufacturing  commercial  starch, 
glucose,  dextrine,  alcohol,  flour,  stockfood,  etc.,  it  is  the  starch  content  of  the 
tuber  that  determines  its  value  as  it  is  from  the  potato-starch  in  its  natural 
state  that  the  various  products  are  made,  or  upon  which  their  food  value  depends. 

(f)  The  quantity  of  starch  contained  in  potatoes  is,  as  a  rule,  10  to  20  per 
cent.  It  is  greatly  influenced  by  the  method  of  keeping  them,  as  the  life  of  the 
tuber  and  consequently  also  the  process  of  decomposition  continues  until  the 
potato  is  used.  It  is  probable  that  an  increase  of  starch  may  be  obtained  by 
drying  out  the  potatoes.  Stored  potatoes  never  should  be  exposed  to  frost. 
When  stored  for  any  length  of  time  their  content  of  starch  decreases,  especially 
if  they  be  stored  in  damp  or  warm  bins.  Sprouting  also  decreases  the  content  of 
starch. 

(f)  Potatoes  raised  in  Germany  for  industrial  purposes  are  marketed  for  at 
least  one-third  less  than  table  potatoes  and  the  highest  prices  paid  (36  cents) 
for  either  variety  during  ten  years  is  nearly  10  cents  less  per  bushel  than  the 
prices  described  by  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture  as  low  in  the  United  States. 
Under  these  circumstances  there  would  appear  to  be  no  great  encouragement  for 
the  building  of  stills  and  starch  and  drying  plants  for  the  utilization  of  potatoes 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES  29 


exclusively  in  the  United  States  on  a  scale  comparable  with  that  in  Germany 
until  some  change  in  agricultural  conditions  gives  the  manufacturer  a  cheaper 
raw  material. 

(n)  "The  reasons  for  the  comparatively  small  industrial  use  of  potatoes  in 
the  United  States  may  be  summed  up  as :  Same  products  can  be  made  cheaper 
from  other  materials ;  price  of  potatoes  for  other  purposes  too  high  ;  not  sufficient 
supply  of  culls  and  surplus  available  to  factories ;  value  of  stockfood ;  foreign 
competition,  Germany  paying  an  average  of  only  18.3  cents  per  bushel  for  indus- 
trial potatoes.  Corn,  for  instance,  can  be  produced  more  economically,  is  better 
for  stock  feeding,  and  is  a  cheaper  source  of  starch,  glucose  and  alcohol.  The 
scarcity  and  high  cost  of  labor  in  the  United  States  are  other  factors  of 
influence." 

"In  every  100  pounds  of  average  potatoes  there  is  75  pounds  of  water ;  of 
the  remaining  25  pounds,  about  20  is  carbohydrates  (starch  and  sugar,  etc.), 
and  2  pounds  protein.  .  .  .  Tests  made  in  1899  of  46  different  varieties 
showed  the  Zenith  variety  to  possess  the  highest  starch  content — 22.9  per  cent; 
and  Royal  Blush  the  least — 13.1  per  cent;  the  average  for  all  varieties  being 
16.2  per  cent.  In  1890,  31  varieties,  mostly  different  from  those  tested  the  previous 
year,  had  an  average  of  14.3  per  cent,  Burbank  showing  the  highest  with  17.7 
per  cent;  and  the  Kidney  the  least — 11.4  per  cent.  All  were  grown  on  the  same 
kind  of  soil  and  under  practically  the  same  cultural  conditions.  Still,  the  varia- 
tions in  starch  content  was  as  much  as  9.8  per  cent.  The  percentage  of  starch 
in  pronged  tubers  was  smaller  than  in  the  regular.  .  .  .  The  percentage  was 
largest  in  the  deeper  growing  tubers  and  smallest  in  those  growing  nearest  the 
surface.  .  .  .  This  would  seem  to  be  due  to  the  temperature,  the  cooler 
the  soil  the  greater  the  starch  content.  .  .  .  Scabby  potatoes  are  not  neces- 
sarily poorer  in  starch  than  healthy  ones." 

POTATO  STARCH 

(f)  The  manufacture  of  starch  from  potatoes  simply  consists  in  the  mechan- 
ical separation  of  starch  from  the  other  parts  of  the  tuber.  These  parts  must 
be  opened  and  disintegrated  and  the  starch  washed  out.  (See  O.  A.  C.  Bulletin.) 

(n)  The  manufacture  of  starch  from  potatoes  in  this  country  is  at  present 
confined  to  culls.  .  .  .  The  margin  of  profit  is  not  large,  in  spite  of  a 
protective  tariff  of  1  cent  a  pound ;  the  factories  are  able  to  run  only  six  weeks 
in  the  year,  and  the  interest  and  overhead  charges  are  therefore  high. 

(f)  The  total  quantity  of  starch  made  in  the  United  States  in  1900  Was 
543,040,139  pounds,  valued  at  $10,888,853;  in  1905  the  total  was  358,005,026 
pounds,  valued  at  $10,975,597.  .  .  .  The  value  of  the  corn  starch  made  by 
the  131  factories  primarily  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  starch  in  1905  was 
$4,702,309,  or  58.2  per  cent  of  the  total;  the  value  of  the  potato  starch  was 
$924,476,  or  12.9  per  cent;  of  cassava  and  wheat  starch,  $1,124,612,  or  12.4  per 
cent;  and  of  cattle  food,  $508,723,  or  6.3  per  cent;  the  value  of  all  other  products, 
which  include  gluten  feeds,  corn  oil,  soap,  etc.,  was  $822,784,  or  10.2  per  cent  of 
the  total.  .  .  .  The  decrease  in  the  output  in  1905  from  1900  was  due  in  a 
large  measure  to  the  decrease  in  the  foreign  demand  for  starch.  .  .  .  There 
was  a  net  decrease  in  1905  of  14  in  the  number  of  corn  starch  factories,  and  a 
net  loss  in  product  of  86,554,660  pounds,  or  nearly  50  per  cent  of  the  decrease 
in  the  total  output. 

(f)  "In  the  United  States  starch  is  principally  made  from  corn.  In  1909 
about  40,000,000  56-pound  bushels  of  corn  were  used  for  this  purpose,  as  com- 
pared with  some  3,500,000  60-pound  bushels  of  potatoes.  The  corn  starch  was 
valued  at  $15,962,916,  and  totaled  638,825,366  pounds;  the  output  of  potato 
starch  was  24,873,415  pounds,  valued  at  $823,019.  Glucose  and  glucose  sirups 
to  the  value  of  nearly  $18,000,000  were  manufactured  in  1909,  but  the  principal 
raw  material  used  was  corn.  The  potato  starch  industry  in  the  United  States 
is  centered  in  Arrostook  County,  Maine,  where  in  1909  there  were  61  of  the  64 
factories  in  the  state.  These  factories  reported  the  consumption  of  2,854,729 
bushels  of  potatoes,  or  over  80  per  cent  of  the  total  used  in  the  countrv  for  the 
manufacture  of  starch. 


30 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


(g)  The  starch  factories  making  potato  starch  produced  27,709,400  pounds 
in  1905,  or  14.1  per  cent  of  the  total  produced  by  the  131  factories  making  the 
manufacture  of  starch  a  specialty.  This  output  of  potato  starch  was  6,232,426 
pounds,  or  18.4  per  cent  less  than  that  of  1900.  No  potato  starch  was  made  in  1905 
in  New  Hampshire  and  North  Dakota,  although  it  was  produced  in  1900,  while 
the  decrease  in  Minnesota  was  large.  .  .  .  The  exports  of  starch  from  the 
United  States  was  124,935,963  pounds  in  1900,  valued  at  $2,604,362  ;  and  61,450,- 
444  pounds  in  1905,  valued  at  $1,430,572.  This  shows  a  loss  in  the  five  years  of 
50.8  per  cent,  and  was  caused  by  the  large  increase  in  the  manufacture  of  potato 
starch  in  Europe,  particularly  in  Germany  and  Russia. 

TABLE  No.   27.     (g)     Quantity  and  Value  of  Potato   Starch  Produced   by   United 

States,  1905  and  1900.     And  Quantity  and  Value  of  Potatoes  Used, 

and  Starch  Produced  in  1905.     *  Michigan  only. 


State 

Census 

Starch  produced 

Potatoes  usr  d 

Pounds 

Value 

Pounds                    Cost 

United    States 

1905 
1900 
1905 
1900 
1905 
1900 
1905 
1900 
1905 
1900 
1905 
1900 

27,709,400 
33,941,826 
15,454,787 
15,273,633 
6,627,638 
10,882,333 
650,517 
265,000 
4,925,8^8 
5,043,060 
50,600 
2,477,800 

$       924,476 
1,129,129 
523,200 
544,760 
221,355 
329,566 
23,379 
8,935 
154,797 
154,030 
1,745 
91,838 

209,372,549 

$       563,651 

Maine 

105,694,521 

331,250 

Minnesota 

60,167,770 

130,583 

New    York    
Wisconsin    ~ 

5,272,200 

11,645 

37,747,978 

88,980 

All    other    states 

*$490,080 

*1,193 

The  average  price  per  pound  for  potato  starch,  according  to  Table  No.  23, 
is  shown  to  have  been  3.33  cents.  Note  that  the  amounts  received  for  the  manu- 
factured starch  was,  roughly,  a  little  less  than  twice  as  much  as  the  cost  of  the 
potatoes  used. 

(d)  The  United  States  exports  and  imports  of  starch,  1911,  1912  and  1913, 
were  as  follows ;  the  varieties  of  the  imports  are  not  specified,  while  the  exports 
probably  were  all  corn  starch : 

TABLE  No.    28. 


Year 

Imports 

Exports 

Pounds 

Value 

Pounds 

Value 

1911 

7,938,730 
15,841,437 
16,710,498 

$  222,470 
478,465 
457,784 

158,239,178 
83,644,749 
110,897,591 

$  3,137,552 
1,965,401 
2,609,716 

1912 

1913 

The  import  duty  on  starch  made  from  potatoes  is  1  cent  per  pound ;  on  all 
other  starch  or  starch  substances,  %  cent  per  pound. 

For  information  of  value  in  regard  to  the  manufacture  of  starch  from  potatoes 
we  again  must  turn  to  Germany,  where  the  industry  has  been  brought  to  a  high 
state  of  perfection,  and  where  more  is  made  than  in  all  the  rest  of  the  world  put 
together.  The  following  should  be  taken  in  connection  with  the  remarks  on 
production  in  Germany,  in  this  bulletin. 

(f)  The  importance  of  the  German  starch-sugar  industry  is  set  forth  in 
imperial  statistics  as  follows : 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


31 


TABLE  No.  29.     Quantities  of  Starch  Manufactured  into  "Sugar" 


Fiscal  years 

Factories 

Produced  in 
establishments 

Purchased 

Solid 
"sn  ear" 
produced 

Wet 

Drj 

Wet 

Dry 

Tons 

Tons 

Tons 

Tons 

Tons 

1906-7      . 
1907-8     
1908-9     
1909-10 

25 
24 

l\ 

24 

48,792 
43,279 
51,107 
77,085 
76,021 

370 
340 
541 
678 
479 

42,461 
46,886 
42,289 
42,844 
45,522 

3,989 
1,515 
3,861 
678 
2,560 

10,064 
9,862 
8,762 
8,184 
8,811 

1910-11 

(k)  Estimate  of  number  of  establishments  in  Germany  making  starch, 
glucose,  etc.,  quantity  of  potatoes  used  therein,  and  amount  of  starchy  materials 
produced  in  years  1899-1902,  year  ending  September  30: 

TABLE  No.   30. 


Year 

Factories 
number 

Quantity  consumed. 
Bushels 

Materials  produced. 
Tons 

1899 

578 

33,333,333 

250,000 

1900 

590 

40,300,000 

274,750 

1901 

595 

44,000,000 

300,000 

1902      

627 

51,000,000 

349,000 

(i)  One  German  factory  uses  250,000  tons  of  potatoes  annually.  The  price 
paid  for  potatoes  of  18  to  24  per  cent  starch  content  is  20  to  35  cents  per  100 
pounds,  or  12  to  21  cents  per  bushel.  One  of  the  by-products  is  3,500  tons 
of  glucose. 

(f)    Export   from   Germany   to  the  United   States: 


1910 
1911 
1912 


TABLE  No.  31.     (f)    Export  from  Germany  to  United  States. 

Potnto  starch  Dextrine,  etc, 

3,301   tons  2,297   tons 

2,163   tons  1,609   tons 

1,002  tons  1,281  tons 


"By  scientific  improvement  of  varieties  of  potatoes  the  starch  contents  were 
increased  from  14  per  cent  in  1875  to  20  per  cent  in  1905,  and  often  reached 
28  per  cent." 

But  the  above  is  contradicted  by  individual  district  tests,  which  show  an 
average  of  15  to  18  per  cent. 

"In  Germany  potatoes  particularly  rich  in  starch  are  grown  especially  for  the 
starch  industry." 

(For  details  of  potato-starch  industry  in  Germany  see  Special  Consular 
Report  No.  64,  Department  of  Commerce  and  Labor.) 

With  regard  to  the  feasibility  and  advisability  of  establishing  a  potato-starch 
factory  on  the  Pacific  Coast,  and,  more  especially  in  Oregon,  the  following  state- 
ments are  made  : 

(h,  greatly  condensed)  The  principal  use  of  potato  starch  in  the  textile 
industries  for  the  sizing  and  finishing  of  goods  and  the  printing  of  calicoes, 
etc.  .  .  .  and  is  much  more  desirable  for  these  purposes  than  corn  starch. 
The  average  price  for  corn  glucose  on  the  Pacific  Coast  is  about  $2.75  per  cwt., 
and  for  potato  glucose  50  to  100  per  cent  more.  Freight  on  corn  glucose,  Chicago 
to  Pacific  Coast,  is  81  cents  per  cwt.  .  .  .  Any  market  other  than  a  local 
household  consumption  would  be  found  on  the  Atlantic  seaboard.  .  .  .  The 
local  consumption  of  glucose  on  the  Pacific  Coast  is  over  13,000  tons  per  annum, 
Chicago  being  the  principal  and  nearest  point  of  supply.  Analyses  of  the  starch 
contents  of  Oregon  potatoes,  the  average  of  a  large  number  of  tests  of  different 
varieties,  give  19.4  per  cent;  of  California  potatoes  an  average  of  15.2  per  cent. 
Assuming  that  100  pounds  of  potatoes  will  yield  16  pounds  of  starch  or  glucose, 
the  cost  of  manufacture  would  be  8  cents,  the  product,  at  2.8  cents  per  pound, 


32  .  MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 

would  be  worth  44  cents,  leaving  a  net  value  of  36  cents  to  cover  the  cost  of 
the  raw  material  delivered  at  the  plant.  .  .  .  The  average  crop  yields  15 
per  cent  culls.  .  .  .  Methods  of  production  of  starch  in  the  United  States 
are  crude  and  not  to  be  compared  to  German  methods.  Probably  the  United 
States  recovers  only  about  60  per  cent  of  the  available  starch  contents,  while 
most  approved  methods  will  yield  approximately  95  per  cent  of  commercially 
dry  starch  (16  to  18  per  cent  water).  According  to  this  6  tons  of  18  per  cent 
potatoes,  or  7  tons  of  15  per  cent,  would  yield  1  ton  of  commercial  starch.  .  .  . 
The  prevailing  price  for  potato  starch  in  New  York  and  Boston  is  3  to  4  cents 
per  pound.  ...  If  cost  of  manufacture  .is  *4  cent  per  pound,  rail  freight 
Vz  cent  and  price  received  4  cents,  value  of  starch  at  point  of  manufacture  is 
3%  cents.  This  would  make  100  pounds  of  18  per  cent  potatoes  worth  60  cents, 
and  of  16  per  cent  worth  52  cents.  .  .  .  For  a  plant  with  a  capacity  of 
5  tons  of  potatoes  per  hour  the  cost  of  machinery  (German)  would  be  $20,000. 
.  .  .  and  total  cost  of  a  plant  to  manufacture  20  tons  of  starch  or  glucose 
per  day  of  24  hours  would  be,  exclusive  of  site,  $60,000.  .  .  .  Such  a  plant 
could  reasonably  handle  15  to  20  thousand  tons  of  potatoes  per  season,  of  six 
months  run,  and  make  about  3,000  tons  of  starch.  .  .  .  This,  at  a  value  of 
3%  cents  per  pound,  would  total  $195,000.  .  .  .  This  means  that  54  cents 
per  cwt.  could  be  paid  for  potatoes,  without  profit.  Any  price  paid  below  54 
cents  would  indicate  the  profit. 

(Note  that  corn  starch  is  worth  1.78  cents  per  pound,  delivered  in  Boston, 
as  shown  in  letter  on  page  24,  and  potato  starch  1%  times  that,  or  2.67  cents.) 

Eustace  Pennock  &  Co.,  Boston,  who  sell  seven-eighths  of  all  the  potato 
starch  manufactured  in  the  United  States,  say : 

They  import  half  their  supply.  Starch  is  delivered  to  cotton  mills  at  3*4  to 
3%  cents  per  pound;  foreign  can  be  landed  in  Boston  at  3  to  3%  cents  per 
pound.  Maine  pays,  at  factories,  for  culls,  25  to  40  or  50  cents  per  barrel,  con- 
taining 2%  bushels,  or  15  to  30  cents  per  cwt.  Suggest  state  bounty  of  at  least 
i<2  cent  per  pound ;  North  Dakota  pays  bounty  of  1  cent  per  pound.  Bounty 
probably  would  pay  freight  from  Pacific  to  Atlantic  Coast. 

C.  E.  Brown,  a  grower  of  20  years  at  Elk  River,  Minnesota,  says,  August 
1,  1914: 

"We  have  starch  factories,  but  they  run  only  to  use  culls,  and  when  there  is 
an  overproduction,  which  is  not  very  often.  When  potatoes  are  worth  over  25 
rents  per  bushel  they  cannot  use  them  for  starch." 

Factory  at  Cambridge,   Minnesota,   reports  September,   1913 : 

"We  operate  only  about  two  months  a  year,  when  price  is  20  to  35  cents  per 
cwt.  Pay  dividends  of  50  to  100  per  cent." 

Factory  at  Princeton,  Minnesota,   reports  September,    1913  : 

"Operate  about  once  in  three  years,  last  in  1909.  Maximum  price  for  potatoes 
18  cents  per  cwt.  No  dividends. 

Factory  at   Ishanti,   Minnesota,   reports   September,    1913  : 

"Operate  40  days  a  year,  pay  20  or  30  cents  per  cwt.  for  potatoes.  Not 
paying  proposition  except  as  dump  for  culls  and  surplus.  Get  61/£  to  8%  pounds 
of  starch  from  60-pound  bushel  of  potatoes.  Starch  sells  at  2%  to  4  cents  per 
pound  in  local  market.  Takes  %  to  %  ton  of  good  soft  coal,  one  man  one  day, 
to  make  ton  of  starch.  Factory  capacity  of  6  to  8  tons  per  day  costs  $15,000 
to  $20,000.  No  money  in  potato  starch  business  at  present  time." 

Dairy   inspector   at   Augusta,    Maine,    says: 

"Potatoes  for  starch  are  worth  15  to  30  cents  per  bushel.  Use  culls  only. 
Value  in  potatoes  not  sufficiently  large  to  warrant  shipment  for  any  considerable 
distance  from  factorjr.  Alcohol  from  potatoes  not  being  made  in  Maine." 

S.  3.  Mealey   of  Monticello,  Minnesota,   says,  July,    1914 : 

"I  am  today  junking  all  five  of  my  starch  factories  that  cost  me  from  $12,000 
to  $18,000  per  mill;  because  I  cannot  afford  to  pay  over  18  to  25  cents  per 
bushel  and  farmers  are  too  prosperous  to  raise^  potatoes  for  that.  This  is  based 
on  a  25-cent  lake  and  rail,  and  30-cent  all-rail  freight  to  Boston  and  New 
England.  Because  of  the  competition  of  sago  and  tapioca  and  corn  starch.  The 
corn  starch  interests  are  spending  thousands  of  dollars  to  perfect  cotton  machin- 
ery for  the  use  of  corn  starch." 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES  33 


(The  Utica  Steam  and  Mohawk  Valley  Cotton  Mills  of  Utica,  New  York, 
February,  1913,  say: 

"We  have  some  times  used  potato  starch  in  the  manufacture  of  cotton  goods, 
but  at  present  we  are  using  almost  exclusively  corn  starch,  for  the  reason  that 
potato  starch  costs  more  than  double  the  price  of  corn  starch.  We  use  six  to 
ten  carloads  of  starch  yearly  in  our  weaving  mills.  At  the  present  time  the 
price  of  high-grade  Pearl  corn  starch,  for  warp-sizing  purposes,  is  $1.78  per 
hundred  pounds,  delivered  in  Utica,  in  bags  weighing  280  pounds  each.  The 
price  in  barrels  is  about  10  cents  per  100  pounds  more.  When  the  price  of  potato 
starch  gets  down  to,  say  1  %  times  the  cost  of  corn  starch  we  would  then  use 
potato  starch  instead.  For  the  past  four  or  five  years  potato  starch  has  been 
bringing  fancy  prices,  as  high  as  4%  to  5  cents  per  pound." 

George  Hall  of  Eugene,  Oregon,  who  was  in  the  starch  business  for  a  number 
of  years,  says :  "Oregon  is  too  distant  from  the  markets  to  make  the 
manufacture  of  potato  starch  profitable  under  present  conditions.  A 
starch  factory  is  not  necessarily  an  expensive  proposition ;  it  should 
not  cost  over  $8,000  for  a  modern  plant  of  small  size.  Several  small 
factories,  built  as  inexpensively  as  possible,  would  be  better  than  one  large  one, 
in  order  to  reduce  transportation  charges  as  much  as  possible.  It  is  doubtful 
if  'green  starch'  wet,  as  it  comes  from  the  crusher,  could  be  shipped  regularly 
and  successfully.  It  sours  very  quickly  in  warm  weather.  Small  'green  starch' 
factories  shipping  to  a  central  dryer  are  impracticable  and  unnecessary :  drying 
is  a  simple  process.  (See  O.  A.  C.  Bulletin.)  Starch  requires  cool  weather  and 
an  abundance  of  water  to  manufacture.  The  market  price  for  potato  starch  is 
controlled  by  the  price  of  corn  starch ;  1  ^  times  the  latter  is  the  rule.  It  Is 
not  practicable  to  pay  over  25  cents  per  bushel  for  potatoes.  That  is  the  max- 
imum. In  New  York  we  figured  to  get  nine  pounds  of  starch  from  each  bushel 
of  potatoes,  using  culls  and  surplus.  We  received  3  to  4^  cents  per  pound  for 
potato  starch.  Ii  any  factory  offers  to  pay  even  as  much  as  30  cents  per  cwt. 
for  starch  potatoes  they  should  be  required  to  give  a  bond  for  payment  of  that 
price  for  a  term  of  years  if  farmers  are  to  plant  expecting  that  payment.  Pay- 
ment should  be  made  according  to  the  starch  content  of  the  potatoes." 

G.  L.  Tarbell  of  Yankton,  Oregon,  and  C.  True  of  Sherwood,  Oregon,  both 
formerly  of  Maine,  where  they  raised  thousands  of  bushels  of  potatoes  for  the 
starch  factories  there,  unite  in  stating  that  25  cents  is  the  maximum  that  can 
be  paid  per  bushel  for  that  purpose,  f.  o.  b.  factory-  •  •  •  That  the  cost  of 
production  of  potatoes  in  Maine  is  12  to  15  cents  per  bushel.  ...  It  is 
impracticable  and  unnecessary  to  ship  green  starch  to  a  central  drying  plant, 
since,  when  the  green  starch  is  made  most  of  the  work  is  done,  and  it  costs 
little  more  to  dry  it ;  because  it  is  of  the  consistency  of  soft  soap  and  therefore 
not  easy  to  handle ;  and  because  it  is  very  apt  to  spoil  in  transit.  .  .  .  It  is 
much  better  to  build  a  number  of  small  factories,  costing  about  $8,000  each,  and 
locate  them  close  to  the  sources  of  potato  supply  and  where  water  is  abundant, 
rather  than  to  build  one  large  plant.  .  .  .  Starch  making  is  a  simple  mechan- 
ical process  for  which  crude  machinery  and  the  simplest  type  of  buildings  are 
entirely  sufficient." 

If,  as  is  claimed,  the  districts  on  the  coast  of  Oregon  produce  as  high  as 
500  to  600  bushels  per  acre,  then  that  is  the  section  where  a  starch  factory 
should  be  located,  if  the  industry  is  undertaken  in  this  State,  and  not  where 
rail  shipments  would  be  necessary. 

ALCOHOL  FROM  POTATOES 

(i)  Potatoes  have  a  higher  percentage  of  alcohol  than  other  root  crops,  giving 
14  to  26  per  cent  of  fermentable  matter  to  the  cwt. ;  20  per  cent  reasonably  may 
be  expected,  (t)  It  has  been  shown  theoretically,  that  50  gallons  of  95  per  cent 
alcohol  should  be  produced  from  the  residues  of  100  bushels  of  potatoes. 

(r)  Approximately  10  pounds  of  industrial  alcohol  can  be  made  from  100  pounds 
of  potatoes,  or  6  pounds  to  the  bushel.  It  has  been  shown  that,  at  the  prices 
quoted  in  1905,  the  amount  of  Indian  corn  necessary  for  the  production  of  a 
gallon  of  industrial  alcohol  costs  not  less  than  15  cents.  From  this  it  is  evident 
that  the  potatoes  for  alcohol  making  will  have  to  be  produced  at  a  cost  not  to 
exceed  15  cents  a  bushel  before  they  can  compete  with  Indian  corn. 


34 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


(n)  The  manufacture  of  alcohol  from  potatoes  has  not  yet  become  established 
in  the  United  States,  for  various  reasons.  The  prices  of  potatoes  marketable  for 
other  purposes  have  been  too  high,  and  no  sufficient  supply  of  culls  and  surplus 
have  been  available.  The  average  price  for  potatoes  for  distilling  in  Germany 
for  five  years,  1906  to  1910,  was  18.3  cents  per  bushel.  It  is  probable  that  the 
farmers  there  would  be  less  disposed  to  grow  the  crop  if  it  were  not  for  its 
indirect  benefits,  including  the  feeding  of  the  mash  left  over.  Petroleum,  which 
Germany  lacks,  provides  us  with  fuel  oil  and  gasoline  at  prices  which  at  present 
nearly  eliminate  alcohol  as  a  competitor. 

(f )  For  the  manufacture  of  alcohol  the  content  of  sugar  in  potatoes  is  as  impor- 
tant a  consideration  as  the  content  of  starch.  Their  value  for  distilling  increases 
with  their  ripeness.  If  they  deteriorate  in  a  dry  state  they  still  are  fit  for  the 
manufacture  of  alcohol. 

(For  details  of  manufacture  of  alcohol  and  process  used,  see  Special  Report 
No.  64,  Department  of  Commerce.) 

(For  regulations  governing  the  manufacture  of  alcohol,  pure  and  denatured, 
in  the  United  States,  prospective  distillers  should  write  to  the  Treasury  Depart- 
ment, Washington,  D.  C.  By  conforming  to  certain  restrictions  of  manufacture 
and  sale,  denatured  alcohol  may  be  made  and  sold  free  of  tax. ) 

(k)  Number  of  potato  distilleries,  quantities  consumed,  and  alcohol  produced 
therefrom  in  Germany,  1899  to  1902,  year  ending  September  30: 

TABLE  No.   32. 


Year 

Distilleries. 
Number 

Quantity  con- 
sumed.   Bushels 

Alcohol  produced. 
Gal  lona 

1899 

5,571 

94,820,000 

82,070,592 

1900 

6,332 

91,740,000 

77,877,078 

1901     .     

5,853 

102,300,000 

87,249,539 

1902 

6,537 

113,266,666 

92,965,940 

(f )  There  were  5,577  farm  stills  and  17  industrial  stills  in  operation  in  Germany 
in  1911,  used  principally  for  the  extraction  of  alcohol  from  potatoes,  against 
7,626  farm  stills  and  710  industrial  stills  used  principally  for  the  extraction  of 
alcohol  from  grain.  The  quantities  of  potatoes  consumed  and  the  alcohol  pro- 
duced in  this  manner  in  recent  years  are  shown  by  the  following  table : 

TABLE   No.    33. 


Alcohol 

produced 

Year  beginning  Octoln-r  1 

factured. 
(Metric  tons)      1 

Agricultural  stills. 
(Gallons) 

Industrial  still?. 
(Gallons) 

1906 

2,632,000 

78,179,270 

265,887 

1907     

2,778,000 

82,384,312 

787.466 

1908 

2,939,000 

89,625.882 

698  889 

1909 

2,540,000 

77,188,009 

438.549 

1910     

2,519,000 

73,570,841 

565,509 

(A  metric  ton  is  2,204.6  pounds.) 

(1)  "For  the  year  1906-07,  5,871  agricultural  distilleries  in  Germany  produced 
78,179,270  gallons  of  alcohol  from  potatoes,  and  21  industrial  distilleries  265,887 
gallons.  This  was  77.3  per  cent  of  the  alcohol  manufactured  from  all  sources, 
which  was  101,473,345  gallons.  Of  this  total  the  percentages  were:  Potatoes, 
77.3  per  cent;  grain,  7.2  per  cent;  grain  yeast,  12.4  per  cent;  molasses,  2.3  per 
cent;  pure  spirits,  .8  per  cent.  Many  of  the  'agricultural'  distilleries  are  owned 
by  the  farmers  themselves  and  worked  on  their  own  account,  but  there  are  also 
combinations  of  smaller  farmers  which  are  formed  for  the  purpose  of  erecting 
a  distillery  and  operating  it  in  mutual  interest,  using  as  raw  materials  the 
potatoes  and  grain  produced  by  their  members.  .  .  .  The  apparatus  of  these 
small  farmers  is  generally  most  primitive,  producing  5  to  13  gallons  at  a 
time.  .  .  .  There  are  also  ambulant  distillers,  who  go  from  farm  to  farm 
and  work  up  the  materials  of  the  farmers.  .  .  .  The  smallest  distillery 
produced  13  gallons,  the  largest  15,850." 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES  35 


Capacity.    Gallons 

Weight.    Pounds 

Price.    Dollars 

330.6 

143 

551.1 
661.3 

205 
238 

992 

314 

1,763 

619 

(f)  "It  is  difficult  to  define  the  area  necessary  to  render  the  erection  of  a 
distillery  profitable.  Nearly  all  the  German  distillers  produce  from  13,000  to 
26,000  gallons,  for  the  manufacture  of  which  8,000  to  37,000  bushels  of  potatoes 
are  necessary." 

"Apparatus  for  obtaining  potato  spirit  containing  35  per  cent  alcohol,  accord- 
ing to  the  Tralles  system,  is  quoted  as  follows : 

TABF.E  No.   34. 


26.4 

52.8 

79.2 
132 
264.1 

In  Germany  a  considerable  conservation  of  both  potatoes  and  cereals  for 
food  purposes  has  been  effected  by  the  decision  of  the  government,  on  account 
of  the  war,  to  cut  down  the  production  of  alcohol  by  40  per  cent. 

(f)  "In  Switzerland,  during  the  last  five  years  the  average  annual  consump- 
tion of  potatoes  for  distilling  has  been  22,500  tons,  with  an  average  price  of 
44  cents  per  cwt.  .  .  .  This  is  only  a  little  more  than  5  per  cent  of  the 
total  production  of  potatoes.  ...  It  has  had  a  beneficial  effect  upon  the 
agricultural  interests  of  the  country,  as  potato  growers  are  to  a  certain  extent 
insured  against  a  too  excessive  depreciation  of  their  crops." 

In  Russia  more  alcohol  is  produced  (or  was  before  the  recent  ukase  against 
vodka)  from  potatoes  than  from  all  other  sources. 

(u)  "Any  scheme  for  the  operation  of  agricultural  distilleries,  whether  large 
or  small,  should  provide  for  the  utilization  of  the  by-product  known  as  'slop.' 
This  is  the  residium  remaining  after  the  alcohol  and  a  small  amount  of  water 
have  been  boiled  off  from  the  fermented  distillery  mash.  .  .  .  This  slop  has 
been  found,  both  in  this  country  and  abroad,  to  be  stock  food  of  high  value,  and 
should  be  fed  to  the  stock  on  the  farm  that  furnishes  the  raw  material.  .  .  . 
It  is  allowable  to  give  from  18  to  20  gallons  per  day  in  fattening  oxen  weighing 
from  1,300  to  1,400  pounds.  More  than  this  amount  has  been  found  injurious. 
Milk  cows  should  not  receive  more  than  16  gallons  daily.  ...  It  should  be 
fed  fresh  and  hot." 

PRODUCTS  OF  DRIED  POTATOES 

In  the  United  States  there  have  been  practically  no  potatoes  dried  for  com- 
mercial use.  In  Germany,  however,  this  is  an  important  part  of  potato  utilization, 
the  dried  product  being  used  for  stock  food,  starch  manufacture,  alcohol,  flour 
(for  both  starch  and  as  food  for  man  and  stock).  To  a  great  measure  drying 
solves  the  problem  of  the  disposal  of  surplus  crops,  as  it  enables  the  product  to 
be  kept  until  there  is  a  sufficient  demand  from  one  or  all  of  the  several  industries. 

(n)  The  problems  to  be  met  in  commercial  potato  drying  relate  mainly  to 
the  present  cost  of  the  labor  in  picking  up  and  delivering  to  the  factory  the 
potatoes  not  marketable  for  table  use.  In  many  cases,  however,  it  is  necessary 
to  remove  these  culls  from  the  field  to  prevent  the  spread  of  potato  diseases, 
and  it  would  seem  that  the  drier  would  pay  for  the  labor  involved. 

(m)  "The  plant  requisite  for  the  drying  of  10,000  tons  of  potatoes  during  a 
season  of  about  eight  months  costs  $18,000  to  $19,000.  The  machinery  alone, 
without  a  press  for  making  the  meal  into  cakes,  costs  $12,000.  For  a  building 
$3,000  suffices,  the  remainder  is  needed  for  pumps,  motive  power,  washing  vats, 
etc.  The  force  needed  to  operate  the  plant  consists  of  seven  men :  engineer, 
stoker,  helper,  cellarman,  two  machine  men,  one  to  handle  the  residual  liquors. 
If  the  final  product  is  to  be  pressed  into  cakes  the  additional  cost  for  plant  is 
about  $4,000,  and  two  more  operatives  are  required.  Such  an  installation 
naturally  can  be  operated  with  great  economy  in  connection  with  a  distillery 
or  starch  factory.  In  practice  it  is  found  that  the  total  cost  of  preparing 


36  MARKETS  FOR   POTATOES 

impressed  potato  meal  by  the  above  method  (including  interest,  depreciation, 
etc.)  is  56  cents  per  long  ton  of  tubers.  The  additional  cost  for  pressing  into 
cakes  is  12  cents  per  ton.  ...  In  practice  H.8  tons  of  raw  potatoes  yield 
one  ton  of  the  dessicated  product." 

(f)  "The  erection  of  a  potato-drying  plant  may  be  considered  practicable  on 
a  farm  of  990  acres  on  the  condition  that  sufficiently  large  area  is  planted  in 
potatoes.  For  such  a  plant  on  a  small  scale,  an  investment  of  at  least  $2,380 
should  be  figured." 

The  cultivation  of  potatoes  is  far  ahead  of  the  manufacture  of  alcohol  and 
starch,  and  the  quantities  used  for  drying  purposes  (in  Germany)  soon  will 
exceed  the  quantities  used  in  all  other  branches  of  the  potato  industry.  It  may 
be  said  that  the  drying  of  potatoes  may  reach  the  importance  of  the  German 
sugar  industry.  The  dried  potato  is  excellent  material  for  the  manufacture  of 
alcohol  .  .  .  and  of  compressed  yeast.  .  .  .  The  dried  is  not  a  com- 
petitor of  the  fresh  potato ;  it  is  an  entirely  different  product  and  never  Will 
exercise  a  harmful  influence  on  the  market.  On  the  other  hand,  drying  firms 
are  becoming  buyers  of  fresh  potatoes,  and  anyone  who  knows  the  influence  the 
starch  industry  has  had  on  the  German  market  will  be  able  to  appreciate  the 
importance  of  this  fact. 

"Distillers  and  starch  converters,  after  all,  use  only  a  small  part  of  the 
(German)  total  crop,  and  the  former  choose  between  potatoes  and  grain  accord- 
ing to  market  conditions.  For  the  present,  therefore,  the  only  form  of  potato 
utilization  which  gives  much  promise  of  ability  to  care  for  future  crops  of 
increased  magnitude  is  the  drying  industry.  This  industry,  first  remarked 
officially  in  1903,  when  there  were  six  establishments  in  the  business,  counted 
254  drying  plants  in  1910,  and  the  quantity  of  potatoes  dried,  which  was  160,539 
tons  during  the  season  of  1908-09,  had  reached  332,641  tons  during  1909-10. 
The  further  development  of  this  industry  is  being  encouraged  as  part  of  a 
well-ordered  plan  for  bringing  about,  as  far  as  possible,  the  economic  indepen- 
dence of  Germany.  As  Germany  now  (1914)  imports  upward  of  3,500,000  tons 
of  stock  foods,  the  ultimate  hope  is  that  by  increasing  the  potato-drying  industry, 
and  also  by  increasing  such  crops  of  other  foods  that  must  be  mixed  with 
potatoes  in  order  to  provide  a  balanced  ration,  the  time  may  not  be  far  distant 
when  there  will  no  longer  be  any  need  of  importing  stock  foods  at  all." 

(n)  In  1910  more  than  twelve  million  bushels  of  potatoes  were  dried  in 
German  factories,  which  numbered  371  in  1913. 

Vice  Consul  Dreyfus  of  Berlin  reports  under  date  of  October  17,   1914; 

"Owing  to  the  war  Germany's  import  of  cereals  is  greatly  curtailed 
especial    efforts   are   being   made   this   year    to   further   the   conservation   of   the 
potato   crop.     .     .     .     The   government  already  has  offered   to  assist   in   setting 
up  factories  for  drying,   the  cost  of  each  one  of  which  is  about  $4,760. 
the  purpose  being  to  dry  as  many  as  possible  during  the  present  season. 
The   sale   of  potatoes   should   increase   correspondingly   with   the   consumption   of 
potato  flour  for  baking.     Many  bakers  already  have  made  bread  with  an  addition 
of  10  to  20  per  cent  of  potato  flour,  of  which  half  was  made  from  dried  potatoes. 
In  view  of  the  fact  that  potato  flour  is  about   8  marks    ($1.90)    per   100   kilos 
(220.46  pounds)    cheaper  than  rye  flour,   this  should  tend  to  lower  the  price  of 
this  necessary  food  product." 

(f)  "The  potato-flour  (sometimes  called  rough  starch)  industry  in  the  Neth- 
erlands was  started  in  1840.  .  .  .  There  are  now  30  factories  for  the  manu- 
facture of  dry  potato  flour,  excluding  all  other  potato  products;  and  14  others 
where  it  is  made  in  other  forms  for  conversion.  .  .  .  It  is  estimated  that 
2,000  workmen  find  employment  in  this  branch  of  industry.  The  total  con- 
sumption of  potatoes  by  all  the  factories,  exclusive  of  those  operated  cooper- 
atively (7  in  number),  averages  800,000  tons  annually  ...  85  per  cent  is 
exported  to  countries  having  important  textile  industries;  exports,  1910,  126,118 
tons;  1911,  133,941  tons;  1912,  151,123  tons.  The  total  annual  output  of  potato 
flour  in  the  Netherlands  is  estimated  at  145,200  tons,  and  that  of  glucose  at 
22,000  tons.  The  price  of  potato  flour  varies  between  $1.60  and  $2.40  per 
100  pounds." 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES  37 

Consul  Ralph  C.   Busser,  Trieste,  Austria,  November  17,  1914,  reports: 

"According  to  a  decree  of  the  Austrian  government  bakers  are  forbidden, 
from  December  1,  1914,  to  use  more  than  70  per  cent  of  wheat  flour  in  the 
composition  of  bread,  and  the  remainder  may  be  potato  flour.  .  .  .  Wheat 
flour  costs  today  $13.40  per  quintal  (220  pounds)  ;  potatoes,  $2.80  per  quintal, 
wholesale.  .  .  .  The  price  of  the  bread  ingredients  therefore  falls  from 
$13.40  to  $9.80." 

(a)  Washington,  D.  C.,  Feb.  14,  1915:  "Baking  experiments  to  test  the  value 
of  making  bread  of  potato  meal  mixed  with  wheat  flour  are  now  being  under- 
taken by  the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture's  Bureau  of  Chemistry. 
This  is  to  test  the  possibilities  of  the  potato  in  the  same  manner  as  Germany 
and  Austria  are  now  advising  their  people  to  do.  The  increased  cost  of  living 
throughout  the  world  has  emphasized  the  fact  that  flour  made  of  other  substances 
than  wheat,  or  of  these  substances  mixed  with  wheat,  might  provide  people  with 
healthful  food  quite  as  nutritious  as  the  pure  wheat  flour,  and  at  the  same 
time  cheaper. 

"Austrian  bakers  are  now  compelled  by  law  to  use  at  least  30  per  cent  potato 
meal  in  making  their  bread.  The  Bureau  of  Chemistry's  potato-meal  bread  has 
been  baked  with  from  25  to  50  per  cent  potato  meal  and  the  remaining  percentage 
wheat.  The  most  satisfactory  loaves  in  combining  economy  and  appearance 
were  those  made  with  the  minimum  percentage  allowed  in  Austria  or  less.  The 
loaves  made  with  more  than  30  per  cent  potato  meal  were  not  so  satisfactory 
as  they  were  heavier  and  less  attractive  in  form.  The  bread  has  a  rather  coarse 
texture  and  dark  appearance,  but  possesses  a  distinctive  and  agreeable  flavor. 
It  also  retains  moisture  for  a  much  longer  period  than  ordinary  wheat  bread. 

"The  Bureau  of  Chemistry  used  the  imported  'potato  flake'  in  some  of  its 
experiments,  and  in  others  meal  made  by  slicing,  milling  and  drying  potatoes  on 
a  small  scale  in  its  laboratories.  It  should  be  added  that  such  ordinary  'potato 
flour'  as  is  on  our  American  markets  is  not  the  same  as  the  German  'potato 
flake'  or  waits  mehl  which  has  given  such  satisfactory  results  in  the  experiments. 

"The  question  has  been  raised  as  to  whether  the  ordinary  cooked  potato  might 
not  be  satisfactorily  substituted  for  the  prepared  potato  meal.  The  experi- 
menters believe  that  it  might  serve  the  same  purpose  if  used  in  just  the  right 
proportion,  but  this  would  be  difficult  for  the  average  housewife  to  determine 
as  there  is  great  danger  of  using  too  much  and  producing  a  very  soggy  loaf. 
However,  the  custom  of  adding  a  very  little  potato  is  already  used  by  many 
housekeepers  to  keep  their  bread  moist,  and  this  practice  can  very  well  be 
recommended  for  more  general  use. 

"The  Bureau  of  Chemistry  is  making  these  experiments  in  spite  of  the  fact 
that  there  is  a  law  which  makes  it  difficult  for  manufacturers  to  make  mixed 
flour  satisfactorily.  This  law  surrounds  the  manufacture  of  mixed  flour  with 
so  many  restrictions  that  the  business  has  not  become  a  popular  one.  The 
result  is  there  is  very  little  mixed  flour  at  present  manufactured  and  offered 
for  sale.  The  Mixed  Flour  Act  was  passed  in  1898  before  there  was  a  Food  and 
Drugs  Act,  and  was  passed  for  the  purpose  of  raising  a  war  revenue  at  a  time 
when  many  of  the  common  articles  of  food  did  not  command  so  high  a  price 
as  now. 

"The  tax  of  4  cents  which  is  now  imposed  on  every  barrel  of  mixed  flour  is 
not  in  itself  a  heavy  one ;  it  is  the  collection  of  it  with  the  attendant  regulations 
and  restrictions  that  hampers  any  manufacturer  who  would  like  to  make 
such  flours. 

"It  should  be  stated  in  connection  with  the  mixing  of  other  materials  with 
wheat  flour  in  making  bread  that  this  cannot  always  be  done  economically. 
There  must  be  taken  into  consideration  the  prevailing  market  prices  of  the 
commodities  to  be  used. 


38 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


"This  article  is  written  primarily  for  the  purpose  of  bringing  to  the  attention 
of  the  public  the  fact  that  in  order  to  obtain  good,  nutritious  and  wholesome 
bread  it  is  not  necessary  to  use  an  entirely  wheat  flour.  A  mixture  will  in  many 
cases  produce  a  bread  which  is  quite  as  satisfactory.  With  this  a  matter  of 
common  knowledge,  it  is  believed  in  times  of  over-production  and  the  consequent 
favorable  market  prices  of  substances  suitable  for  mixing  with  wheat  flour  that 
bakers  may  wish  to  experiment  with  certain  mixtures.  Care  should  be  taken, 
however,  in  marketing  or  selling  of  bread  to  which  has  been  added  in  appreciable 
amount  any  ingredient  other  than  wheat,  that  no  deception  is  practiced  and  that 
the  consumers  are  aware  of  the  kind  of  bread  being  furnished  them." 


POTATOES  AS  STOCK  FOOD 

(u)    The  analysis  of  potatoes,  potato  skins,  and  potato  "slop"   is  as  follows 

TABLE  No.   35. 


Material 

Nitro- 
gen free 
extract 

Ash 

Protein 

(Nx.6.25) 

Ether 
extract 
(fat) 

Sugar 
as 
dextrose 

Starch 

Crude 
fibre 

Potato  
Potato  Skins  
Potato  "Slop" 

10.55 
38.40 
46.24 

4.39 
6.51 
11.26 

10.06 
21.87 
30.00 

0.29 
2.55 
0.69 

1.59 
1.44 
2.29 

70.35 
8.65 
2.98 

2.26 
20.69 
6.54 

See  chapter  on  Alcohol,  page  26,  this  bulletin. 

TABLE  No.   36. — Comparative  Compositions  of  Ordinary  Food  Materials. 
(From  "The  Science  of  Nutrition,"  by  Graham  Lusk,  Ph.  D.,  W.  B.  Saunders,  Pub.) 


'  h  \ 

Available  nutrients 

1 

<g$ 

t> 

~"~ 

23- 

Kind  of  food  material           |fc-g 

i5i 

a 

lavailab] 
Lutrients 

1 

«i 

1 

1 

iff! 

ood  value 
aterand 
liminate 
er  pounc 

M°P 

F 

t>H 

£ 

|M 

3* 

< 

fe  a     eo 

fo  f  a,  u. 

% 

% 

% 

% 

% 

Calories 

% 

Potatoes                 

20.0 

78.3 

l.°4 

1  7 

0.1 

17.7 

0.8 

370 

20.3 

Potatoes  (boiled  and 
cooked)     

75.5 

1.7 

1.9 

0.1 

20.0 

0.8 

415 

22.8 

Potatoes  (mashed  and 
creamed  ) 

75.1 

2.0 

2.0 

2.7 

17.1 

1.1 

475 

22.9 

Wheat  flour,    entire  

11.4 

4.5 

10.7 

1.7 

70.9 

0.8 

1645 

84.1 

Wheat  flour,  baker's 

grade            

11.9 

4  2 

10.3 

1.4 

71.7 

0.5 

1640 

83.9 

Rye   flour 

12.9 

3  6 

5.3 

0.8 

76.9 

0.5 

1610 

83.5 

Corn    (maize)    flour.... 
Rice 



12.6 
12.3 

3.6 
3.7 

5.8 
6.5 

1.2 
0.3 

76.3        0.5 
76.9    j     0.3 

1625 
1610 

83.8 
84.0 

Rice     boiled             

72.5 

1.1 

2.3 

0.1 

23.8 

0.2 

505 

26.4 

Taking  the  last  column  of  Table  No.  36  and  the  average  farm^values  in  the 
United  States  on  December  1,  1913,  in  cents  per  bushel,  as  bases,  the  following 
will  give  an  idea  of  the  cost  per  unit  of  food  value  of  the  foods  mentioned: 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 


39 


TABLE  No.   37. 


Pood 

Pounds 
per 
bushel 

Average 
prices  per 
bushel  in 
U.  S.  Dec. 
1,  1913 

Prices  per 
pound 

Percentage 
of  food 
value  per 
pound 

Cost  p^r  unit, 
of  food  value 
in  deciiuals  of 
cents 

Potatoes        

60 

Cents 

68.8 

Cents 
1.14 

20.3 

.0056 

Wheat   Flour   
Rye    Flour        

60 
56 

73.4 
63.4 

1.22 
1.13 

84.1 
83.5 

.0014 
.0014 

Corn  Flour 

56 

69.1 

1.23 

83.8 

.0015 

Rice 

56 

85.8 

1.53 

84.0 

.0018 

According  to  the  above,  the  food  values  in  potatoes  cost,  per  pound  of  product, 
four  times  as  much  as  wheat  or  rye,  and  nearly  as  much  more  than  corn  or  rice. 
Or,  to  put  it  another- way,  and  considered  from  the  standpoint  of  monetary  cost, 
each  of  the  other  four  foods  is  practically  worth  four  times  as  much  as  potatoes, 
pound  for  pound. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  is  stated  that  an  acre  planted  with  potatoes  will  yield 
more  than  ten,  fourteen,  or  even  seventeen  times  as  much  food  material  as  will 
one  planted  with  wheat,  rye  or  peas. 

(f )  The  growing  recognition  of  the  value  of  dried  potatoes  for  stock  food  arose 
from  the  impossibility  of  feeding  them  raw  in  large  quantities  and  the  trouble 
and  expense  incident  to  boiling.     On  July  31,  1910,  there  were  254  potato-drying 
factories  in  operation  in  Germany,  nearly  all  of  them  worked  in  connection  with 
large  agricultural  undertakings.     The  amount  of  raw  material  treated  in  the  last 
two  years  for  which  figures  are  available  was:    In  1908-09  160,539  metric  tons; 
in   1909-10,    332,641   tons. 

(h)  The  German  authorities  consider  their  dried  potato  product  to  have  a  feeding 
value  equivalent  to  80  per  cent  of  that  of  American  corn. 

(n)  It  is  said  that  there  are  19  millioa  swine  supported  by  potato  feed  in  Ger- 
many, and  that  potato  tops  are  now  dried  and  used  for  stock  feed  on  many 
estates. 

(g)  Although  there  was  a  decrease,  in  1905  from  1900,  of  10,119,142  pounds, 
or  14.9  per  cent,  in  the  quantity  of  cattle  food  produced  in  starch  factories  in  the 
United  States,   the  value  increased  $250,700,  or  97.2  per  cent. 

(f)  The  pulp  residue  from  the  manufacture  of  starch — the  most  important 
by-product — generally  is  used  for  fodder,  but  it  can  be  so  used  only  if  necessary 
and  proportionate  amounts  of  nutritious  food  substances  containing  nitrogen  are 
added.  It  can  be  used  fresh,  sour  or  steamed,  and  all  animals  consume  it  readily 
if  it  is  fairly  dry  or  has  been  previously  heated. 

(s)  "Of  course  dessicated  potatoes  are  supposed  to  be  soaked  in  water  before 
using  and  in  this  way  regain  somewhat  of  their  original  characteristics.  Canned 
dried  potatoes  are  on  the  market  and  are  prepared  for  use  in  camps  or  wherever 
it  is  not  convenient  to  cook  food.  They  may  be  kept  in  good  condition  for  a 
long  time,  and  do  not  differ  greatly  from  freshly  cooked  potatoes. 

(f )  "If  raw  potatoes  are  used  as  stock  food,  horses  and  cattle  never  should  be 
given  more  than  10  pounds  thereof  per  day,  otherwise  colic  and  inflammation  of 
the  stomach  and  intestines  are  caused.  When  fed  to  sheep  in  greater  quantities 
than  2  pounds  per  day  they  cause  chlorosis  and  dropsy.  If  groats  and  oil  cake 
are  given  to  the  animals  the  disease  is  conquered.  Boiling  and  steaming  the 
potatoes  also  destroys  the  bad  effects.  If  it  is  desired  to  use  large  quantities 
as  fodder  they  always  should  be  boiled  or  steamed.  Frozen  potatoes  should  be 
preserved  by  being  soured  in  pits  or  holes.  For  this  purpose  the  potatoes  are 
steamed,  mashed,  and  put  into  a  pit  in  alternating  layers,  each  about  6  inches 
thick,  of  crushed  potato  and  chopped  straw.  The  top  should  be  well  covered 
with  earth — thus  protected  they  keep  for  years  and  are  a  good  fodder  for  cattle 
and  swine.  For  fattening  purposes  potatoes  are  a  good  feed  for  cattle  and  sheep 
and  swine  if  used  in  conjunction  with  the  necessary  quantity  of  rough  provender 
and  nutritive  fodder.  Steamed  potatoes  are  more  fattening  than  raw,  and 
animals  prefer  them. 


40  MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES 

"Whether  boiled  or  raw  potatoes  have  absolutely  no  effect  upon  the  quantity 
or  quality  of  the  milk.  If  necessary  to  use  potatoes  for  fodder  for  milk  cows. 
an  animal  weighing  about  1,100  pounds  should  not  be  given  more  than  26  to 
:>o  pounds  daily.  Fattened  and  stalled  cattle  may  eat  as  much  as  29  to  55 
pounds.  Horses  should  not  be  fed  potatoes  at  all  if  they  have  to  work  continually. 
Of  the  residues  of  the  technical  industries,  distillers'  wash  plays  an  important 
part  as  a  winter  fodder  for  milk  cattle  as  well  as  for  fattening  purposes — the 
proportion  of  nutriment  is  greater  than  in  the  potato  itself."  (For  details  of 
distillers'  wash  as  stock  food  see  Special  Consular  Report  No.  64,  Department 
of  Commerce;  also  see  paragraph  on  "slop,"  in  chapter  on  Alcohol,  page  26, 
this  bulletin.) 

A.  A.  Borkind.  Professor  of  Animal  Industry,  Vermont  Experiment  Station,  says  : 

"At  15  cents  per  bushel,  potatoes  are  more  costly  food  for  dairy  stock  than 
silage ;  they  produce  neither  more  nor  better  milk.  Potatoes  are  best  adapted 
to  hog  feeding.  In  order  to  secure  the  best  results  the  potatoes  should  be  cooked 
so  as  to  be  mealy,  and  be  mixed  with  corn  meal  or  ther  ground  gra.ins  to  form  a 
rather  heavy  mush.  In  this  form  they  are  relished  by  the  swine.  Skim  milk 
makes  a  valuable  adjunct  to  feed  with  this  mixture  of  potatoes  and  meal.  Pota- 
toes alone  cannot  be  used  to  advantage  as  a  feed,  nor  can  they  be  eaten  by  the 
hogs  in  any  great  quantity.  Experiments  at  Wisconsin  and  elsewhere  show  that 
450  pounds  of  cooked  potatoes  are  worth  approximately  100  pounds  of  corn  meal 
for  swine  feeding." 

J.   L.   Stone,  of  the  Cornell   Experiment   Station,    says: 

"For  stock  food  the  total  digestive  nutrients  in  a  ton  of  potatoes  will  be 
slightly  more  than  one-fifth  as  much  as  would  be  contained  in  a  ton  of  corn  meal. 
The  potatoes  are  even  more  highly  carbonaceous  than  the  corn  meal,  and  natur- 
ally would  be  best  fed  in  conjunction  with  those  feeds  that  supply  an  abundance 
of  protein.  There  is  another  factor,  however,  involved,  that  is  of  considerable 
importance.  Raw  potatoes  are  a  succulent  food,  and  used  in  connection  with 
a  ration  that  is  deficient  in  succulence  (usually  one  that  does  not  include  corn 
silage)  they  would  have  a  value  above  that  indicated  by  the  total  digestive 
nutrients.  Some  succulent  food  is  desirable  in  all  rations,  and  a  moderate  amount 
of  such  food,  when  added  as  above,  produces  an  effect  above  that  which  would 
be  indicated  by  the  nutrients  present.  The  writer's  personal  experience  is  that 
as  small  an  amount  as  half  a  peck  a  day  fed  all  dairy  cows  (lacking  other  succu- 
lence) produces  quite  a  marked  effect  in  the  milk  flow,  and  two  or  three  times 
this  amount  may  be  fed  to  advantage,  if  the  potatoes  are  available.  But  they 
should  be  introduced  into  the  ration  gradually.  To  avoid  danger  from  choking 
it  is  well  to  run  the  potatoes  through  a  root  cutter.  It  is  impossible  to  give  a 
cash  valuation  to  a  food  stuff  of  this  kind,  except  as  a  result  of  careful  experi- 
ment. It  is  probable  that  under  ordinary  circumstances  and  the  present  condition 
of  the  grain  market,  potatoes  might  be  figured  at  from  15  to  20  cents  a  bushel 
for  feeding  purposes ;  and  if  succulence  were  sadly  needed  they  might  reach  an 
equivalent  to  a  valuation  of  25  cents  a  bushel." 

(q)  "In  one  test  potatoes  were  buried  in  a  silo  filled  with  crimson  clover.  They 
acquired  the  characteristic  color  of  the  plant  and  the  odor  developed  in  fermen- 
tation. It  was  found  that  they  had  been  cooked  by  the  heat  of  fermentation  and 
rendered  more  digestible.  Another  silo  was  filled  by  surrounding  about  a  ton 
of  potatoes  with  corn  (whole  plant).  Upon  opening  the  corn  and  potatoes  were 
found  in  good  condition.  The  potatoes  were  not  as  thoroughly  cooked  as  when 
packed  with  the  clover.  As  shown  by  analysis  the  potatoes  ensiled  with  crimson 
clover  had  lost  less  water  than  those  with  the  corn.  The  crushed  potatoes  when 
removed  from  the  silo  lost  weight  very  rapidly  on  exposure  to  the  air,  and 
formed  a  hard  mass,  containing  only  15  to  20  per  cent  of  water.  In  this  condition 
they  could  be  kept  for  a  long  time.  When  required  for  feeding  they  were  soaked 
in  water,  regaining  their  softness  and  digestibility.  Another  investigator  ensiled 
chopped  raw  potatoes  with  two  pounds  of  salt  per  1,000  pounds,  under  pressure 
of  2,500  pounds  per  square  yard.  The  total  cost  of  washing,  chopping,  putting 
in  silo,  and  weighing  50  tons  of  potatoes,  was  about  $15.  The  temperature  of 
the  silo  when  filled  was  39  degrees  F.  When  opened  sixty-two  days  later  it  was 
50  degrees.  Cattle  ate  this  pulp  greedily,  alone  or  mixed  with  cottonseed  cake." 


MARKETS  FOR  POTATOES  41 

A  SUGGESTION 

From  all  of  the  foregoing  a  solution  of  the  problem  of  profitable  potato 
growing  and  marketing  might  be  found  in  a  cooperative  plan  that  would  assure 
the  farmer  of  his  full  share  of  every  cent  of  profit  there  might  be  extracted 
from  the  business. 

To  this  end  it  might  be  advisable  to  establish  a  central  depot  at  a  convenient 
shipping  point  readily  accessible  to  the  growers  of  the  district  in  which  the 
association  is  formed.  To  this  depot  all  of  the  growers  would  ship  all  of  their 
potatoes,  where  they  would  be  inspected  and  sorted.  Only  those  of  the  very 
highest  quality  in  every  respect  would  be  marketed  for  seed  and  table  use,  and 
these  carefully  packed  and  sold  under  a  name  or  brand  that  would  establish 
their  reputation.  If  this  high  quality  was  rigidly  maintained  and  the  reputation 
fully  earned  and  justified  (as  has  been  done  similarly  for  apples  from  certain 
districts)  a  premium  price  above  the  prevailing  market  could  be  commanded, 
demanded  and  depended  upon.  All  culls  and  surplus  then  could  be  worked  up 
for  industrial  purposes  and  the  volume  of  supply  probably  would  warrant  the 
erection  and  operation  of  the  necessary  plants  for  drying,  starch  manufacturing 
and  alcohol  distilling.  The  peelings  from  the  dryer  and  the  residue  from  it  and 
the  starch  factory,  including  the  water  from  the  latter,  could  be  used  by  the 
distillery  for  the  extraction  of  all  remaining  fermentable  values.  Pulp  mash 
from  the  distillery,  and  the  "slop,"  could  be  returned  to  the  growers  for  stock 
food  in  proportion  to  their  contribution  of  potatoes  or  their  needs,  and  all  that 
finally  remained  returned  to  the  ground  for  fertilizer.  In  this  way  every  stage 
of  the  operation,  every  pound  of  potatoes  raised,  might  be  made  to  yield  a  profit 
to  the  growers.  This  presupposes  and  includes  mutual  efforts  for  the  improve- 
ment in  quality  and  quantity  of  potatoes  grown,  and  for  the  combatting  and 
eradication  of  disease.  It  might  be  advisable  to  grow  different  varieties 
especially  adapted  for  baking,  frying,  boiling,  and  for  high  starch  content.  While 
this  plan  would  be  an  experiment  in  its  initial  stages  it  is  possible  that  it  might 
be  the  solution  of  many  of  the  present  difficulties,  disappointments  and  defeats. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below, 
liftlfdnlf '  9S  ™>"*g  on  first  day  overdue 


483C 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


